Junior forward Stephanie Czajkowski scored a game-high 25 points for William Smith, while senior guard Paula Foote and junior guard Marisa Vespa chipped in 15 and 11 points, respectively.
For the Yellowjackets, Danielle Muller scored a team-high 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting. Julie Marriott and Emily Lyons both contributed 13 points to the winning effort.
The Herons got off to a quick start, building a 17-10 lead eight minutes into the contest. Rochester fought back to tie the game at 21-all. Sophomore guard Latasha Coney answered with a layup to give William Smith its final lead of the contest 23-21. The Yellowjackets outscored the Herons 12-8 heading into the locker room with a 35-29 lead.
Early in the second half, Rochester used a 13-2 run to expand its lead to 16, 50-34, with 14:13 remaining. Lyons fueled the surge with five points, including three for three from the line. The Yellowjackets built their largest lead with 10:48 left, 55-37, on a jumper by Marriott.
William Smith used a 16-7 run to whittle their deficit down to single digits with 2:44 to go. Czajkowski strapped the team on her back, scoring eight points for the Herons during the ill-fated comeback. Foote made it a six-point game, 71-65, with her final basket of the night at 1:07, but William Smith got no closer until Czajkowski’s last second layup made the final margin just five points.
Rochester shot 53.1 percent from the floor, while limiting William Smith to 39.1 percent. Neither team was particularly sharp from the line, with the Herons holding a 69.6 percent to 57.1 percent advantage.
William Smith is back in action on Dec. 8, when the Herons face CUNY York at Brockport at 7 p.m.
William Smith College vs Rochester 12-05-06 6 p.m. at Palestra, Rochester, N.Y. At Palestra, Rochester, N.Y. ROCHESTER 74, WILLIAM SMITH COLLEGE 69 WILLIAM SMITH COLLEGE (2-3) Stephanie Czajkowski 11-20 3-5 25; Paula Foote 5-9 4-5 15; Marisa Vespa 2-11 6-6 11; Latasha Coney 3-12 1-2 8; Erin Cunningham 2-6 2-4 6; Kristen Suatoni 1-1 0-0 2; Robyn Capoto 1-1 0-1 2; Paige Myers 0-1 0-0 0; Amanda Nann 0-2 0-0 0; Stephanie Cochran 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-64 16-23 69. ROCHESTER (7-0) Danielle Muller 8-10 3-4 20; Julie Marriott 5-10 3-5 13; Emily Lyons 4-5 5-7 13; Jessica Waddell 3-4 2-4 8; Alex Porter 2-4 3-5 7; Megan Krebbeks 3-6 0-2 6; Emily Bango 0-4 4-8 4; Helen Baroody 1-2 0-0 3; Jessica Mastronardi 0-0 0-0 0; Marlena Fisher 0-0 0-0 0; Johanna McNelis 0-3 0-0 0; Rachel Stern 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 26-49 20-35 74. William Smith College......... 29 40 - 69 Rochester..................... 35 39 - 74 3-point goals--William Smith College 3-14 (Paula Foote 1-2; Marisa Vespa 1-5; Latasha Coney 1-5; Paige Myers 0-1; Stephanie Cochran 0-1), Rochester 2-7 (Danielle Muller 1-2; Helen Baroody 1-2; Emily Bango 0-2; Johanna McNelis 0-1). Fouled out--William Smith College-None, Rochester-None. Rebounds--William Smith College 34 (Erin Cunningham 9), Rochester 37 (Alex Porter 10). Assists--William Smith College 14 (Marisa Vespa 5; Paula Foote 5), Rochester 20 (Emily Bango 6). Total fouls--William Smith College 24, Rochester 23. Technical fouls--William Smith College-None, Rochester-None. A-250