NEW PALTZ, N.Y. - McKenna Barry (Clifton Park) pitched a four-hit shutout and drove in four runs as Cortland defeated SUNYAC leader New Paltz, 6-0, in the opening game of a conference doubleheader. The host Hawks earned a split of the doubleheader with a 2-1 victory in Game 2 behind a four-hitter from Leah Gunsett.
 
New Paltz is now 13-1 in the league (20-14 overall), with Cortland a game back at 12-2 in the conference (16-14 overall) with four league games remaining. New Paltz plays doubleheaders Friday at Fredonia and Saturday at third-place Buffalo State, while Cortland hosts twinbills versus Potsdam Friday and Plattsburgh Saturday.
 
Cortland 6, New Paltz 0
 
Barry improved to 7-5 on the season, giving up four hits and one walk and striking out three. She also finished 2-for-3 at the plate with a homer, double, walk and four RBI. Laila Smith (Guilderland) went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored and Halle Wright (Ballston Spa) was 1-for-3 with a walk and two RBI.
 
Sydney Waldon, last week's NFCA Division III National Pitcher of the Week, took the loss for the Hawks. She gave up six hits and four walks, struck out five and allowed six runs, five earned. Kelsey O'Brien finished 1-for-2 with a walk to lead New Paltz's offense.
 
Cortland scored in the second on a Shelby LaMont (Amsterdam) one-out walk, a Kayla Pendergast (West Hempstead) two-out infield single and back-to-back walks by Lainie Ornstein (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) and Wright. The game remained 1-0 until the fifth when Smith hit a one-out double and, with two outs, Barry smacked a two-run homer to give Cortland a 3-0 lead. The Red Dragons closed the scoring in the seventh with a Wright RBI single and a Barry two-run double.
 
New Paltz left the bases loaded in the first inning and had runners reach second base in the second and sixth innings.
 
New Paltz 2, Cortland 1
 
Gunsett improved to 10-5 after allowing four hits and one unearned run in a complete-game effort. She struck out four and did not walk anyone. Gianna Endieveri (Glens Falls) stared for Cortland and gave up two runs on seven hits with a walk in four innings. Molly Farley (Goshen/Chester Academy) entered with a runner on in the bottom of the fifth and allowed only one walk with three strikeouts in two innings.
 
Cortland took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Wright reached on an error and stole second, but was thrown out at third on a fielder's choice. Barry, however, followed with an RBI double. New Paltz tied the game in the bottom of the first when Jackie Rometo singled, stole second with one out, moved to third on a lineout and scored on Mallory Rohon's RBI double.
 
Cortland loaded the bases with one out in the second but wasn't able to score, and in the bottom of the second the Hawks took the lead with the game's final run. Michaela Bridgwood doubled with one out and bunt singles by Sophia D'Arcangelis and Lauren Serrao loaded the bases. Cortland briefly held off the Hawks with a force out at home on a grounder to third for the second out, but Kelsey O'Brien followed with an RBI single.
 
Cortland stranded a runner at second in the third inning and runners on first and third in the fourth. The Red Dragons didn't get another runner into scoring position the rest of the contest.
 
D'Arcangelis finished 2-for-3 and Rometo was 1-for-3 with a walk for New Paltz. Ornstein finished 2-for-3 for Cortland.