Sophomore guard Latasha Coney (Lyons/Lyons, N.Y.) also added a double-double for the Herons on 14 points, 10 rebounds, and a game-high five steals. Junior guard Marisa Vespa (Immaculate Heart/Watertown, N.Y.) and junior forward Stephanie Czajkowski (Bishop Ludden/Syracuse, N.Y.) contributed 14 and 11 points, respectively.
Krystal Coke led Skidmore with 18 points and 10 rebounds.
An exciting back-and-forth affair, the score was tied 11 times and the lead changed hands 13 times. Skidmore (7-7, 0-4) jumped out to an 8-0 lead, but William Smith (8-5, 2-1) battled back and went into the locker room with the contest tied 27-all.
After the break, the Thoroughbreds led by as many as four, but again the Herons came back and this time converted their momentum into an insurmountable lead. Clinging to a 60-56 lead with 3:57 remaining, Cunningham scored five straight points, launching William Smith on a 9-0 run to expand the Heron lead to 13. Coney iced the win with a 4-for-4 showing at the line in the final minute. She was 6-of-8 for the game, while Cunningham was 8-for-8 from the stripe.
William Smith shot better than 58 percent from the floor in the second half, while limiting their hosts to just 33 percent. The Herons outrebounded the Thoroughbreds 48-40.
William Smith is back in action on Jan. 20, when the Herons travel to Union. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
WILLIAM SMITH (8-5, 2-1) Erin Cunningham 6-10 8-8 20; Latasha Coney 4-12 6-8 14; Marisa Vespa 4-7 6-8 14; Stephanie Czajkowski 5-12 1-2 11; Robyn Capoto 3-8 2-4 8; Paige Myers 1-1 0-0 3; Kristen Suatoni 1-2 0-1 2; Emily Alcott 0-1 1-2 1; Julie Hooper 0-0 0-0 0; Stephanie Cochran 0-2 0-0 0; Amanda Nann 0-2 0-2 0. Totals 24-57 24-35 73. SKIDMORE (7-7, 0-4) Krystal Coke 8-14 2-6 18; Sharlyn Harper 5-13 0-0 14; Dana Leonard 2-4 4-8 8; Kellye Caufield 1-8 4-6 7; Shardae Gonsalves 2-7 0-0 6; Laura Michel 2-4 0-0 5; Laurel Brown 1-6 0-0 3; Kelly Bischoff 0-0 0-0 0; Danielle Gil 0-3 0-0 0; Amber Kinsey 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 21-63 10-20 61. Halftime-Tied 27-27. 3-point goals--William Smith 1-9 (Myers 1-1; Coney 0-4; Vespa 0-2; Alcott 0-1; Cochran 0-1), Skidmore 9-23 (Harper 4-7; Gonsalves 2-5; Brown 1-3; Caufield 1-5; Michel 1-1; Kinsey 0-2). Fouled out--William Smith-None, Skidmore-Harper; Gonsalves; Coke; Michel. Rebounds--William Smith 48 (Cunningham 13), Skidmore 40 (Coke 10). Assists--William Smith 13 (Suatoni 4; Cunningham 4), Skidmore 15 (Harper 7). Total fouls--William Smith 18, Skidmore 23. Technical fouls--William Smith-None, Skidmore-None. A-110