MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – The Morrisville State College women's basketball team staged a comeback from an 11-point halftime deficit to down visiting SUNY Polytechnic 81-70 in North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) action Tuesday night in Morrisville.

The win moves the Mustangs to 13-5 overall, 9-2 in conference action, and in a tie for first place in the North Division with the visitors. SUNY Polytechnic dropped to 11-7 overall, 9-2 in NEAC play with the loss.

Senior's Alyssa Gratien (Syracuse, N.Y.) and Jennel Paul (Brooklyn, N.Y.) combined for 50 of Morrisville State's points, 39 of which came in the second half.

Gratien netted a season high 30 points in the win, draining 5-of-10 from beyond the arc, while hitting 7-of-7 from the free throw line and adding two assists and five steals to her tallies on the night. Twenty-five of Gratien's points came in the second half.

Paul posted a collegiate high 20 points, 14 alone in the second period, while adding five rebounds and two steals to her tallies.

Two additional teammates posted double figures as well, including Jordan Anderson (West Edmeston, N.Y.) who added 14 in a 10-for-10 shooting performance from the free throw line. Anderson dished out five assists in the victory, while teammate Haley Kilmartin (Fort Plain, N.Y.) contributed 10 points and five rebounds off the bench in the win.

Morrisville State controlled the boards in the contest, 40-31, and had a team high seven from freshman forward Marissa Woodard (Unadilla, N.Y.).

Three registered double digits for the visitors including Geena Gallo who had a team best 20 points and nine rebounds. Molly MacLachlan added 13 points and eight assists, snagging seven rebounds, while teammate Emily Alicea chipped in 12 points.

Morrisville State struggled from the floor for a majority of the first half, hitting a mere 22.7% from the floor as SUNY Polytechnic led by 19 with 3:32 to go in the opening period, before the hosts went on an 8-0 run to close out the half, six points that came from Kilmartin.

With SUNY Polytechnic leading 38-27 at the break, the Mustangs started the second half on a fast and furious pace, stunning the Wildcats with a 12-2 run, all 12 points coming off the hot hand of Gratien to make it a one point ball game just 3:29 in.

The Wildcats regained a five point advantage minutes later, but Morrisville State didn't go away, chipping away at the SUNY Poly lead before a three by Gratien gave the hosts the two-point lead with 7:25 to go.

The Mustangs then went on a 6-1 run to claim a seven point advantage, and didn't relinquish the lead as they closed out the half converting 12-of-15 shots from the free throw line to collect the win.

Morrisville State outscored the visitors 54-32 in the second half alone, hitting 53.6% from the floor, nailing 15-of-28 shots. The Mustangs made the most of their trips to the free throw line, hitting 20-of-23 alone in the second half, going 27-for-30 from the charity stripe on the night.

Morrisville State returns to the court Saturday, traveling to Penn College on Saturday, before facing St. Elizabeth on Sunday.

Morrisville State's curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at both the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. An action-oriented, interactive learning lab, the college is a national leader in technology and has been lauded for its exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.

In addition to being named to the 2014 President's Higher Community Education Service Honor Roll, the college was recognized by U.S. News and World Report as an institution in the top tier of the Best Regional Colleges list and ranked second among regional colleges nationwide for outperforming its anticipated graduation rate. For more information visit www.morrisville.edu.

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