POTSDAM, N.Y.—A strong fourth quarter lifted the SUNY Potsdam women's basketball team (2-2, 1-0 SUNYAC) to a 61-53 win over Plattsburgh State (3-3, 0-1) in the SUNYAC opener at Jerry Welsh Gymnasium on Tuesday night. Senior forward Jakia Howard (Syracuse, N.Y./Nottingham) led the Bears with 14 points and senior guard Dyamon Hunter (Bronx, N.Y./Thurgood Marshall Academy) scored 11. Sophomore forward Jenna Cotter (Johnson City, N.Y./Susquehanna Valley) matched a career-high with 10 points for Potsdam.
 
The teams answered basket for basket and traded leads through the first six minutes of the first quarter. Potsdam got a little separation in the last few minutes. Late buckets from Howard and free throws from Hunter gave the Bears an 18-14 lead through 10 minutes. Howard had eight points in the opening quarter and Hunter had four.
 
Plattsburgh opened the second quarter on a 9-3 run to grab a 23-21 advantage at 5:32. After a 3-pointer from sophomore guard Carley Hill (Essex, Vt./Rice Memorial) briefly gave the Bears back the lead at 24-23, the Cardinals answered with the next six straight started by a three from freshman guard Kortney McCarthy (Peru, N.Y./Peru). Potsdam junior guard Bella Barner (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool) answered with a three to close the gap to 29-27. Sophomore guard Mikayla Shipley (North Chili, N.Y./Churchville-Chili) scored on a layup with 19 seconds left and Potsdam trailed 30-29 at the half.
 
Scoring was tough to come by early in the third quarter. Plattsburgh outscored the Bears 8-3 in the opening four minutes, but Potsdam rallied. After a Shipley free throw, Cotter closed the gap to 38-37 at 3:41 and Barner followed with a three 39 seconds later for a 40-38 Bears lead. It was back and forth after that. Hunter gave Potsdam a 42-41 advantage with a layup, but Cardinals sophomore guard Payton Couture (Redford, N.Y./Saranac Lake) answered with a jumper to put Plattsburgh back up by one. Two Free throws from Cotter and another from sophomore guard Xy'El Bradford (Syracuse, N.Y./Syracuse Academy of Sciences) in the final minute gave Potsdam a 45-43 advantage through 30 minutes.
 
Howard had a strong start to the fourth quarter. She scored the first six points of the last period to give the Bears a 53-43 lead with 7:30 left. Hunter added a layup at 5:49 to give Potsdam a 10-point advantage. Plattsburgh chipped away at the lead with a 7-2 run. A layup from McCarthy made it a 55-50 contest with 3:36 to play. Tough defense shut down the Cardinals the rest of the way as the Bears closed out the 61-53 victory.
 
The Cardinals had remarkably balanced scoring with six players scoring eight or nine points. McCarthy scored nine, as did Couture, senior guard Mya Smith (Wappingers Falls, N.Y./Roy C. Ketcham) and freshman guard Jayden Wilson (Johnstown, N.Y./Johnstown). Senior forward Hannah Ruberto (Long Island, N.Y./Sachem East) and sophomore guard Izzy Wilbur (Red Creek, N.Y./Red Creek) each finished with eight.
 
The Bears shot 37.5-percent from the floor, while holding the Cardinals to just 29.2. Potsdam also edged Plattsburgh on the glass 50-48.
 
Hunter now has 1,020 career points and is just one behind Nicole Beauregard for fifth place on the program's all-time scoring list.
 
Potsdam is back in action this weekend as the Bears head to SUNY New Paltz on Friday and SUNY Oneonta on Saturday.