By: Patrick Louer
BROCKPORT, N.Y.—Brockport entered the locker room with a three-point deficit at halftime. This is only the second time Brockport has trailed at halftime while at home. After regrouping at halftime, the depth and effort propelled the Golden Eagles to a home win and they rode the Vlog all season a strong third quarter to a 73-67 victory.
Houghton was riding two straight wins and sitting at 13-2 coming into Friday night. Senior guard Kayla Camacho, Houghton's 2023-2024 Female Athlete of the Year, led the way early for the Highlanders with five early points. Houghton found early success against Brockport's zone full-court pressure, pushing the ball up the floor and into the corners and resulting in five made threes in the first quarter. Their three-point shooting helped get them to a 19-16 lead after one.
Matching Camacho's star power was junior guard Stephanie Jean-Baptiste. She matched Camacho's fast start with nine first-half points of her own. Both top four in scoring in the Empire 8 (Baptiste second, Camacho fourth) made for an excellent back-and-forth individual matchup and had a lot to do with the eight lead changes in the first half. Jean-Baptiste would finish the game with 21 and Camacho with 25, both team-highs.
After Hohgton came out hot at the start of the second, Brockport was in desperate need of an offensive spark. They got it off the bench thanks to senior guard Harmony Philo. The Saint Rose transfer knocked down two jumpers from deep to give Houghton a taste of their own medicine. Philo's timely buckets weren't enough, as Brockport still trailed by three into intermission.
After a first-half battle, head coach Corrine Jones's message to her team was simple.
"We know what we need to do, we just have to do it."
Brockport came out to start the second half by ramping up their tenacious defense on the perimeter. Off an eight-for-20 effort in the first half from deep, the Golden Eagles' defense held the Highlanders to two-of-eight from distance in the third quarter. Leaning on their depth, freshman guards Jackie Kosakiewicz and Peyton Maneri, along with sophomore guard Mandy Brink, brought energy onto the court.
"We have to use our legs and get up and down the court," Jones said. "They're not calling calling fouls so we have to go through people to finish."
Brockport's defensive effort, led by their young guards, translated to 17 transition points while forcing seven turnovers in the third quarter. To complement their third-quarter surge, who but Philo to hit two timely threes to stay perfect from beyond the arc.
"I'm feeling great," Philo said. "I haven't been shooting well, so it feels good and a great way to get back in rhythm against a great opponent."
Philo finished the game with 19 points while being perfect from three (five-for-five). She helped Brockport hold onto a 55-50 lead after three quarters of play
Despite being the much smaller team, Brockport went at the Highlanders' paint defense in the fourth quarter. Junior guard Cameron Tooley led the way, facilitating in the halfcourt which led to a team-high five assists. Brockport's assist-to-turnover ratio (17:eight) was better than Houghton's top-five national rate, as they had 18 assists to match 18 turnovers.
It was after Tooley took an elbow to the face and then dove on the floor for a loose ball that the momentum fully switched in favor of the Golden Eagles. Tooley did everything that doesn't show up on the stat sheet, being an unsung hero all afternoon.
"We always want to be the stronger team," Philo said. "We're with our strength and conditioning coach everyday, getting stronger."
Although the Highlanders cut the lead to three late in the game, key efforts on the boards from senior guards Kaileigh Hunt and Shannon Blankenship sealed the deal for the Golden Eagles, combining for 11 boards on the night. Despite giving up seven inches of height to Houghton sophomore center Tabitha DeVries, Hunt battled the entire game, holding her to only seven rebounds and helping Brockport outscore Houghton in the paint 34-18.
"We just want to be ready to play better teams and for playoffs," Philo said.
Brockport (14-2 overall, 7-0 in E8) have made quite the first impression on the Empire 8. They'll try to remain undefeated at home when they take on Alfred today. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
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