For Immediate Release: January 29, 2006
Contact: David O'Brian (dobrian@binghamton.edu)
Phone: 607-777-6478

Binghamton women's basketball defeats Albany 70-49

Box Score

VESTAL, N.Y.-- Sophomore center Laine Kurpniece (Riga, Latvia) scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds leading Binghamton (12-6, 5-2 AE) to a 70-49 victory over Albany (5-13, 1-6 AE) in an America East Conference women's basketball game Sunday afternoon at the Events Center. The win extends the Bearcats' win streak to two games.

Sophomore guard Laura Sario (Espoo, Finland) registered 15 points and tied for the team-high with four assists. She shot 6-for-6 from the field, including 2-for-2 from beyond the three-point arc. Senior guard Jen Blues (Overland Park, Kan.) added 14 points, giving her 926 points for her career. She now ranks 10th all time in school history, surpassing Regan Stevens (1993-97), who had 923 points.

"We came out with a great deal of intensity but we played some loose minutes midway through the game," head coach Rich Conover said. "Credit Albany for not giving up but Laura and Laine came up with some big baskets for us down the stretch.

Binghamton opened up a 23-5 lead with 6:07 left in the first half as the Great Danes misfired on 16 of their first 18 shots. From there, the Bearcat cruised to a 34-20 lead. In the second half, Albany went on an 8-0 run in a span of 4:19 to narrow the deficit to 50-41 with 6:56 remaining in the game. The Bearcats, however, closed out the game on a 20-8 run.

Senior guard Jen Schumacher, who went to nearby Whitney Point High School, finished with a team-high 13 points in the losing effort.

Binghamton outscored Albany in bench points 18-0 and outrebounded the Great Danes 45-28. The Bearcats also shot 16-for-19 (84.2%) from the free throw line.

NOTES: Senior forward Rachel Laws (Wyncote, Pa.) missed her fourth straight game with a sprained ankle. Sophomore forward Brianna Thompson (Chehalis, Wash.) who missed the previous game, returned to the court today and scored six points, grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists in 14 minutes of action ... freshman forward Laura Franceski (Moscow, Pa.) blocked three shots for the second game in a row. She now has a team-high 16 blocks this season ... the 2,499 fans at the game is the biggest attendance for a women's basketball game in the Events Center's two-year history ... Binghamton now leads the overall series against Albany 19-18.