The Berkeley College women's basketball team dropped a heartbreaker on Saturday afternoon at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, falling to the Pioneers of Alfred State University by a score of 62-61. With the loss, the Knights' two-game winning streak was snapped, as Berkeley dipped to 2-8 on the year. Alfred State won for the second time in as many days and improved to 9-5 on the 2016-2017 campaign.
The Knights trailed 61-55 with just less than two minutes to play, but Berkeley College battled back to tie the game at 61. The 6-0 run was started by a three-point basket by standout Gianna Acosta with 1:40 remaining in regulation. 32 seconds later, Crystal Miller connected on one-of-two free throw opportunities to bring her team to within two points, 61-59. Janera Roper would then connect on a pair of freebees with 36 seconds remaining to knot the score.
Berkeley had an opportunity to win the game in the waning seconds, but the rebound on Ashley Duplan's missed jumper ended up in the hands of the Pioneers' April Acosta who was fouled by Roper with 4.4 seconds remaining on the clock. Acosta would then proceed to the free throw line where she would proceed to miss the first attempt, before draining the second.
Berkeley College – with no timeouts remaining – still had a chance to win the contest with one basket. Roper's desperation heave from half court ended up being an air-ball that landed out of bounds with 0.6 seconds left. Alfred State University would then successfully inbound the basketball – without being fouled – as time expired. And with that, the Pioneers had a one-point victory.
Leading the way for Alfred State University in the victory was Catherine Bialecki – as she finished with a game-high 29 points while connecting on 13 of her 20 attempts from the floor. She also grabbed nine rebounds and blocked nine shots while recording two assists. Kimberly Levee also contributed nine points in a winning effort.
Despite the loss for the Knights, it was Roper posting a double-double, as she scored a team-high 17 pints while grabbing 12 rebounds and adding three steals. Acosta finished her evening with 12 points and six rebounds, and Akiah Luceus added seven points and a game-high 13 boards.
In what was a very close game throughout, neither team led by more than nine points the entire game. The Pioneers shot 39.1 percent from the floor (25-64) compared to 27 percent for the Knights (20-74). Both teams struggled mightily from downtown, as Alfred State University connected on just two of it 15 attempts from long range compared to a 9.5 percent conversion rate from three-point land for Berkeley College (2-21). The Knights held a slight 51-48 edge in the rebounding department, while also committing 23 miscues compared to 29 for the opposition.
Berkeley College will look to bounce back on Wednesday evening, as the Knights will travel to Corona, NY to take on the Warriors of Vaughn College in a Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest. Start-time at the Elmcor Recreation Center is set for 6:00pm.
