Canton, NY – Kat McRobbie-Taru scored a team-high 18 points including 10 in the first half but host and top seed Cortland shot 57% from three-point range to earn a 67-54 win in the SUNYAC Semifinals on Friday evening.

THE BASICS

• Result: SUNY Cortland 67, SUNY Canton 54
• Location: Corey Gymnasium - Cortland, NY
• Records: SUNY Cortland (23-3) | SUNY Canton (16-11)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Play was close early on with Cortland opening a 10-4 lead just over four minutes into the game. Canton responded with a 6-0 run to knot things at 10 apiece as McRobbie-Taru had six of the Roos first eight points of the game.
• The Red Dragons closed the first quarter on a 10-2 run to take a 20-12 lead after 10 minutes of action.
• Canton cut the deficit in half down to four in the first minute of the second quarter after a three-pointer from Sierra Pabo and a layup from Natalie Bartle. Cortland responded with an 11-0 run to open a 32-17 advantage, their largest of the game, with just under two minutes left in the opening half. The hosts led 33-19 at intermission.
• McRobbie-Taru led the Roos with 10 first-half points, while Jackie Funk had 11 with three treys for Cortland. The Red Dragons shot 40% from the field and 55% from three-point range in the first half, while Canton tallied marks of 38% and 20%.
• The Roos stormed out of the half on an 11-2 run to cut the Cortland lead to just five (35-30) less than four minutes into the second half. Hope Aniceto had five points as four different players scored during the spurt.
• Following an Aniceto three with 3:54 left in the third Canton was within just four (41-37), as she scored 10 points in the third quarter. The Red Dragons responded with a 7-0 run and led 48-39 after three quarters.
• Canton cut the deficit to seven just over three minutes into the fourth quarter, but that was as close as they would get as the hosts held on for the win.

 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• McRobbie-Taru led the Roos with 18 points on 9-for-14 shooting, while Bartle tallied 15 points, five rebounds and four steals. Pabo recorded 11 points and three assists, while Aniceto finished with 10 points.
• Funk led Cortland with 22 points hitting five of her six three-pointers, while Kayla Campbell added 12 points and five assists. Kaeli McAnally posted nine points, Brooke Tillotson had eight points and nine boards and Sophie Bissaillon added eight points.
• The Red Dragons shot 42% from the field but hit on 57% (12-for-21) of their threes. The Roos recorded marks of 43% and 23%, respectively.
• Cortland held advantages in rebounds (36-26), bench points (10-0) and second chance points (13-6). The Roos had the edge in points in the paint (28-20).

ELITE 20 AWARD
SUNY Canton's Abigail Rice and Sadey Sprabary have both been recognized with the SUNYAC's Elite 20 Award, which goes to the student-athlete at each of the SUNYAC's championship final sites with the highest cumulative grade point average. Rice, a Health Care Management major, and Sprabary, a Health & Fitness Promotion major, both carry perfect 4.0 GPA's in their respective programs.

For her performance during the tournament Kat McRobbie-Taru was named to the All-Tournament Team. 

2025 SUNYAC Women's Basketball All-Tournament Team
Giavanna White-Principio (Oswego)
Kat McRobbie-Taru (Canton)
Julia Sabatino (New Paltz)
Brooke Tillotson (Cortland)
Kayla Campbell (Cortland)
MVP - Jackie Funk (Cortland)
 

WHAT'S NEXT?
This concludes a successful 2024-25 season for the Roos that saw them host and win a SUNYAC playoff game. The Red Dragons will host the winner of two seed New Paltz and three seed Oswego in the SUNYAC championship game on Saturday at 4 p.m.  
   

Discover SUNY Canton, where innovation meets opportunity. The college's career-focused educational programs emphasize hands-on and applied learning opportunities in digital design, engineering technology, health, information technology, management, public service, and veterinary technology. Faculty members bring real-world experience and exceptional academic expertise to the classroom. As a leader in online education, SUNY Canton offers unmatched flexibility with hundreds of courses and 25 comprehensive degree programs offered completely online. The SUNY Canton Kangaroos compete at the NCAA Division III level and are members of the SUNYAC. In addition to its 15 traditional teams, SUNY Canton offers coed varsity esports and cheerleading.