The William Smith College basketball team got a pair of double-doubles, but Salisbury University slipped past the Herons 70-67 in overtime in the finale of the Jamie L. Roberts Classic this evening.
Guard Brooke Jarvis shared game-high honors with a season-high 27 points, knocking down 12 of her 22 shots from the floor. She also corralled a game-high 15 rebounds, matching her season-high. Forward Lauren DeVaney added 15 points and 13 boards. The duo accounted for half of William Smith’s 56 rebounds in the game, 14 more than the Sea Gulls. Forward Olivia Parisi chipped in nine points, six boards, and a team-high three assists.
Salisbury was paced by Lauren Fortescue’s 27 points and game-high seven steals. Kaylee Otlowski contributed 12 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. The Sea Gulls were able to overcome their deficit on the glass with defensive pressure that forced the Herons into 30 turnovers.
William Smith outscored Salisbury by two points in each of the first two quarters to carry a 31-27 lead into halftime. Jarvis and Fortescue each had 11 points in the first half.
Both teams struggled to shoot the ball in the third quarter, going a combined 7-of-34 from the floor, but the Herons managed to add to the lead, taking a 43-35 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Sea Gulls (9-2) scored the first six points of the fourth quarter to cut their deficit to two. William Smith countered with a 10-2 run, including five points from Parisi, that gave the Herons a 53-43 lead.
After a pair of Molly Walsh free throws put the Herons up 55-45, Otlowski drained a jumper that sparked a 10-0 Salisbury run. Each of the Sea Gulls’ next eight points came off of William Smith turnovers. Fortescue capped the run with a pair of free throws with 1:21 left in regulation.
The game remained tied until DeVaney earned a trip to the free throw line with 5.8 seconds left. She missed her first attempt, but sank the second for a 56-55 edge. Salisbury called timeout to advance the ball across midcourt. On the inbounds play, Fortescue was fouled with 4.2. She made her first free throw to tie the game, but missed the second, necessitating overtime.
The Herons led by as many as three early in OT, but five lead changes later, Emily Dilger’s basket with 1:38 to go gave Salisbury the lead for good, 66-65. On the ensuing possession, William Smith turned the ball over leading to Abby Wilkinson’s layup for a 3-point edge.
The Herons missed a 3-pointer with about 30 seconds to go that would have tied the game, but after that never took a shot that could have tied the game or given them the lead. Fortescue sealed the outcome with a steal in the final three seconds.
William Smith (2-5) will be back in action at noon on Thursday, Dec. 30, when the Herons host Hamilton (5-3).
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