Box Score ROCHESTER, N.Y.—The William Smith College basketball team gave third-ranked University of Rochester all it could handle before the Yellowjackets squeaked out a 74-69 win on their home floor. The win lifts Rochester to 7-0 on the season, while the Herons slip to 2-3.
Junior forward Stephanie Czajkowski (Bishop Ludden/Syracuse, N.Y.) scored a game-high 25 points for William Smith, while senior guard Paula Foote (Sidney/Sidney, N.Y.) and junior guard Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) chipped in 15 and 11 points, respectively.
For the Yellowjackets, Danielle Muller scored a team-high 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting. Julie Marriott and Emily Lyons both contributed 13 points to the winning effort.
The Herons got off to a quick start, building a 17-10 lead eight minutes into the contest. Rochester fought back to tie the game at 21-all. Sophomore guard Latasha Coney (Lyons/Lyons, N.Y.) answered with a layup to give William Smith its final lead of the contest 23-21. The Yellowjackets outscored the Herons 12-8 heading into the locker room with a 35-29 lead.
Early in the second half, Rochester used a 13-2 run to expand its lead to 16, 50-34, with 14:13 remaining. Lyons fueled the surge with five points, including three for three from the line. The Yellowjackets built their largest lead with 10:48 left, 55-37, on a jumper by Marriott.
William Smith used a 16-7 run to whittle their deficit down to single digits with 2:44 to go. Czajkowski strapped the team on her back, scoring eight points for the Herons during the ill-fated comeback. Foote made it a six-point game, 71-65, with her final basket of the night at 1:07, but William Smith got no closer until Czajkowski’s last second layup made the final margin just five points.
Rochester shot 53.1 percent from the floor, while limiting William Smith to 39.1 percent. Neither team was particularly sharp from the line, with the Herons holding a 69.6 percent to 57.1 percent advantage.
William Smith is back in action on Dec. 8, when the Herons face CUNY York at Brockport at 7 p.m.
