ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Experience matters, just ask
Erin Frazier.
Frazier, a sophomore forward, stepped to the free-throw line with 5.9 seconds remaining and the Roberts Wesleyan University women's basketball team trailing the College of Staten Island by one point in Saturday afternoon's East Coast Conference game in the Voller Athletic Center.
Frazier calmly sank both shots and Roberts forced a turnover on the subsequent defensive possession to secure a 75-74 victory and its first conference win of the season.
"The moment is never too big for her," Roberts coach
Kevin Clifford said of Frazier, who entered the game shooting 63.6% from the line but made both of her attempts on Saturday. "I sat down after she made the first one because I knew that she was going to make the second one, too."
"At that point the game was not over," said Frazier, who went 12-for-12 from the line – including 6-for-6 in the fourth quarter – in the title game while leading Teaneck High School to its second straight sectional championship as a senior in 2024. "There were five seconds left and a lot can happen in five seconds. I just focused on making both shots and getting a stop on defense."
Frazier's free throws capped an 8-1 run as the Redhawks (4-10, 1-5 ECC) overcame a six-point deficit in the final 2:39.
"That's all the players," said Clifford, who encouraged his team to play for each other and the patients at Golisano Children's Hospital in the team's annual game for Golisano. "The coaching staff came up with a good game plan, but in the last two minutes you've got to make plays. You need to get stops and you need to make free throws and we did those two things."
Freshman
Aniyah Jones led Roberts with 21 points,
Jada Mushat added 13 and senior
Cristina Gonzalez-Simarro Rubio scored 12.
Frazier finished with 11 rebounds and four assists while recording her fourth double-double in the past five games.
Roberts shot 54 percent from the field (27 of 50) and scored 38 points in the paint. The Redhawks also held a 27-10 advantage in bench points.
The Redhawks return to action at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday for an ECC contest at D'Youville.