ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Nazareth used a 12-1 scoring run toward the end of the second half to help them hold off visiting RIT, 52-49, in a women's Empire 8 basketball game Tuesday evening. The Tigers' hopes of tying the game in the closing seconds ended when Courtney Tennant's three-point shot bounced off the rim. Junior Brittany Wilson and sophomore Jenee Vanderstyne finished with 16 points and 10 points, respectively, for the Golden Flyers.
With the victory, Nazareth improves to 6-7 overall and evens its Empire 8 conference record at 2-2. RIT drops to 3-10 overall and 1-3 in conference games following the loss.
Before the Golden Flyers' scoring run, the largest lead of the close, hard-fought game was five points as Nazareth held early leads of 9-4, 14-9, and 20-15 in the first half before settling for a 20-19 lead at halftime.
After the Golden Flyers claimed a 26-23 lead following a basket by junior Brittany Patenaude, the Tigers tallied seven straight points to take their largest lead of the game with 15:29 remaining in the second half. RIT's lead was short lived, however, as Wilson and fellow-juniors Erica Shaw and Danielle Chamberlain combined to score nine of the next 10 points during the following five minutes to give Nazareth a 35-31 lead with about 10 minutes to play in regulation.
After a free throw by Brittany TallChief, the Tigers' Kayla Wheeler tallied the next five points with a jumper and converting a traditional three-point play to tie the game, 36-36, and set up the Golden Flyers' decisive 12-1 scoring run. Vanderstyne started the run with a three-point basket, which was followed by baskets by junior Katie Kollar, Wilson, and TallChief. Wilson capped the 4:43 scoring run with a three-point basket to give Nazareth a 48-37 lead with 2:08 to play.
RIT's attempt to rally started with a three-point basket by Leslie Havens, who scored the Tigers' next seven points to drop Nazareth's lead to 50-44 with 1:11 to play. The Golden Flyers were 4-8 from the charity stripe during RIT's frantic rally to provide the Tigers with a chance to stay in the game. Tennant connected on a three-point attempt to cut Nazareth's lead to one possession, 52-49, with 47 seconds in regulation. After winding down the clock, Wilson's shot attempt was off the mark, which set up Tennant's last second three-point attempt that bounced off the rim.
The Golden Flyers' defense held RIT to shooting 14-57 (25 percent) from the field to earn the victory. The Tigers finished 17-23 from the free throw line to stay close throughout the game. RIT and Nazareth recorded 26 turnovers and 23 turnovers, respectively, to prevent either offense from establishing their rhythm.
In addition to their points, Vanderstyne had six assists and four rebounds while Wilson recorded seven rebounds and TallChief tallied a team-high 10 rebounds.
Tennant finished with a game-high 19 points and 14 rebounds for RIT. Havens tallied 14 points and Kayla Wheeler added 11 points.