GENESEO, N.Y. - The SUNY Geneseo women's basketball team picked up a thrilling 84-79 victory over Nazareth on Friday evening, defeating the Golden Flyers in overtime. The win improves the Knights record to 8-3 overall and 2-0 in Empire 8 action.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The first quarter of action saw 10 lead changes, and finished with the score tied at 19-19. Aliza Whitehead scored three points down the stretch for the Knights while Kristin Suydam dropped in a layup to help the Knights stay within reach.
• The Golden Flyers took control early in the second quarter and never relinquished the lead, but a jump shot from Maggie McGrane in the final minute of the half kept the game within two points at 35-33.
• Nazareth came out of halftime firing, and quickly went ahead by 10 points at 51-41. However, the Knights remained calm and big shots from McGrane, Sofia Vasselman, and Grace Galgano helped them cut the deficit to just two points at 57-55 by the end of the third quarter.
• Geneseo continued to trail for the majority of the fourth quarter, but a put-back layup from Audrey Hintz tied the game at 65-65, then McGrane picked up a steal on the defensive end and knocked down two free throws to gain the lead. Vasselman knocked down a 3 and Galgano made a nice move in the paint down the stretch, but the Golden Flyers were able to tie the game and send it into overtime.
• The Knights never trailed in overtime after a layup from Kristin Suydam put them ahead early. With the game tied at 77-77, Galgano converted a big layup with 1:12 on the clock, then after a defensive stop McGrane fooled the defense and converted a mid-range jump shot to go up by four. Geneseo's defense held strong down the stretch and they pulled out the 84-79 victory.

QUICK FACTS:

• The Knights had six players reach double-digit scoring, with McGrane leading the way at 20 points (Suydam 16, Galgano 14, Hintz 11, Eva Elliot 10, Vasselman 10).
• Hintz led the rebounding effort with 12, recording a double-double, while McGrane dished out a game high eight assists.
• Galgano leads the conference in field goal percentage at 55 percent, while leading the team in scoring (139) and rebounding (84).

WHAT'S NEXT?
Geneseo will turn around and host St. John Fisher tomorrow at 2 p.m. in Schrader Gym.