Jiyun Chae '24 (Frank Poulin)
Jiyun Chae '24 (Frank Poulin)

Chae Scores 20 as Blue Basketball Falls to SUNY Canton, 47-40

WELLESLEY, Mass. - A fourth quarter run pushed SUNY Canton past Wellesley College basketball, 47-40, on Tuesday at Dorothy Towne Fieldhouse.

Senior Joie Culkin (Spencerport, N.Y.) stuffed the statsheet for the Kangaroos (5-5) with 10 points and 14 rebounds while first years Sophia Munoz (Tucson, Ariz.) and Hope Aniceto (Bolingbrook, Ill.) both scored 11. Junior Jiyun Chae (Chantilly, Va.) commanded the offense and defense for the Blue (5-5) with 20 points in addition to six steals. Sophomore Sairah O'Brien-Forde (Binghamton, N.Y.) led Wellesley with eight rebounds and five assists.

The first quarter was a defensive stalemate, with SUNY Canton outscoring Wellesley 9-6. Culkin snagged seven rebounds for the Kangaroos.

The second quarter went in favor of Wellesley, as the Blue outscored SUNY Canton 13-5 to take a 21-12 lead going into the half. Chae put up nine points on 4 of 4 shooting to keep the Blue in control of the game and O'Brien-Forde had four rebounds and three assists in the quarter.

The Kangaroos turned the tide in the third quarter scoring six of the first seven points with a pair of threes from Aniceto and Culkin. The Blue brough their lead back up to eight at 26-18 on a jumper by Chae before SUNY Canton scored seven straight, cutting the gap to one on an Aniceto three. A buzzer beater layup from Culkin tied the game at 29-29 at the end of three.

Wellesley scored the next four points with baskets from Chae and O'Brien-Forde before the Kangaroos launched an offensive barrage, going on a 14-2 run highlighted by key shots from Munoz and Aniceto. The Blue cut the lead down to five at 45-40 with Chae making three consecutive free throws, but ultimately the fourth quarter surge pushed SUNY Canton to a 47-40 victory.

The Blue return to action on December 28 in Las Vegas for the D3Hoops.com Classic against St. Vincent at 5:00 PM EST. The Kangaroos return home Saturday to face SUNY Cobbleskill at 1:00 PM.