(BOX SCORE)

FREDONIA, NY—Fredonia (3-2/1-0) forced 33 Buffalo State (1-3/0-1) turnovers and held on for a 51-47 victory in the SUNYAC opener tonight at Steele Hall.

Jessica Clark (Fulton/G. Ray Bodley) led Buffalo State with 13 points, and freshman Staci McElroy (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs) added 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Dee Layne (Brooklyn/E. NY Family Academy) chipped in eight points and 11 rebounds.

The game featured eight lead changes, but Fredonia took the lead for good with 11:32 remaining. The Bengals cut the deficit to 49-47 with 44 seconds remaining, but the Blue Devils hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds to ice the game. Fredonia outscored the Bengals 21-9 off turnovers.

The Bengals will hit the road again next Friday for a non-conference game at Albany College of Pharmacy.