Box Score GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith basketball team lost its 2009 debut in Bristol Gym today, falling to Potsdam State 90-74 in a non-conference contest. The Herons slip to 5-5 on the season, while the Bears won their seventh straight to improve to 7-1.

Potsdam outrebounded William Smith 46-38, including 26-14 after halftime. The extra board work translated into a 17-7 advantage in second chance points in the second half. The Herons also hurt themselves with 22 turnovers, which the Bears converted into 32 points.

The game started off tight, with neither team leading by more than five in the first 10 minutes, but Potsdam used a 12-4 run to open up its largest lead of the period, 36-25, 3:45 before the break. William Smith ended the half on a 9-0 run to close the gap to just a single point, 38-37.

In the opening two minutes of the second half, the Herons missed a pair of three-point tries and a pair of free throws that would have given them the lead. The Bears snapped out of the scoring draught first, netting the first six points of the session and riding a 13-4 run to a 51-41 lead with 14:27 remaining. William Smith trimmed its deficit to six three times over the next four minutes, but each time Potsdam fended off the threat with timely scoring. The Herons got no closer than seven down the stretch.

Junior guard Cortney Poirier (Brushton-Moira/Moira, N.Y.) led five Bears in double figures with a game-high 24 points, while Maureen Curley (Madrid-Waddington/Madrid, N.Y.) added 19 points, a game-high nine rebounds, and a team-high four assists.

Junior forward Erin Cunningham (Morris Knolls/Rockaway, N.J.) paced four William Smith players in double digits with 18 points. Senior guard Latasha Coney (Lyons/Lyons, N.Y.) enjoyed a strong all-around game, producing 15 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and six steals. Sophomore forward Ashlinn Barber (Spencer-Van Etten/Spencer, N.Y.) and first-year forward Kristen Kush (Fulton/Fulton, N.Y.) each added 13 points for the Herons.

William Smith will be back in action tomorrow, Jan. 4, when the Herons host Medaille (7-2) at 3 p.m.