Over the course of their recent losing streak, the Tompkins Cortland women's basketball team has consistently been plagued by poor starts. In most games the Panthers would dig themselves a big hole in the first quarter and then be unable to recover. That wasn't the case on Saturday as the Panthers started strong and finished even stronger, winning 56-45 over SUNY Adirondack. The win improves Tompkins Cortland to 4-11 on the season while Adirondack drops to 8-11.

The first few minutes were close before the Panthers made their first run. With Adirondack holding an 8-4 lead, Karissa Wilbur (McGraw/McGraw H.S.) hit a jumper to start a 12-0 run to end the quarter and give the Panthers a 16-8 lead at the break. It marked just the fourth time this season the Panthers had ended the opening period with the lead, and the home team increased the lead to nine points in the second period before taking a 27-20 advantage into halftime.

The Timberwolves made a move in the third quarter, using a 10-3 run to open the quarter to tie the game at 30-30. A basket by Adrianna Royce (Newfield/Newfield H.S.) put the Panthers back in front, but a 3-pointers by Adirondack gave the visitors the lead. Now trailing for the first time since the first quarter, the Panthers responded, led by Wilbur. The freshman connected on 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions and scored all 7 points of a 7-2 run to move the home team back in front. The quarter ended with the Panthers up 39-37, but Adirondack tied the game in the opening seconds of the fourth. After trading 3-pointers the score stood at 42-42 with 6:50 left to play, a Wilbur free throw started a 10-0 run over the next five minutes to seal the game for the Panthers.

Wilbur had a monster game, finishing with 26 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Madison Kelly (Moravia/Moravia H.S.) also came up big, filling the stat sheet with 13 points, 9 rebounds, 7 steals, and 6 assists.

Looking ahead

The Panthers have a quick turnaround, traveling to Saranac Lake for a Sunday game with North Country Community College.