Ithaca Women's Basketball Team Tips Off Postseason Friday With Empire 8 Semifinal
ITHACA, N.Y. -- The women's basketball team (19-6, 15-1 Empire 8) will be the top seed for this weekend's Empire 8 Championship Tournament. The Bombers, who've been the top seed for five of the eight conference tournaments and are the only team to qualify for every one, host Utica (15-10, 11-5 Empire 8) Friday at 6 p.m. in one semifinal. Second-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology (19-6, 12-4 Empire 8) hosts third-seeded St. John Fisher (15-10, 12-4 Empire 8) in Friday's other semifinal. The highest-seeded semifinal winner will host Sunday's final (which will be played at either noon or 1 p.m.) with the Empire 8's automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs at stake.
Ticket prices for Friday's game are $4 (general admission) and $2 (students/faculty/staff with ID, children and senior citizens). There is no charge for children under 12. Fans can follow Friday's semifinal online through Live Stats, WICB's broadcast, ICTV's webcast or Ithaca's Sport Management and Media blog.
The Bombers, who are fourth in the latest NCAA East Region ranking, swept both meetings with the Pioneers (winning 74-53 in Utica and 75-61 in Ben Light Gymnasium). Ithaca is led by senior forward Elissa Klie (Ramapo/Wyckoff, N.J.), a first-team Empire 8 all-star who tops the team in scoring (11.5 ppg), rebounding (6.9 rpg), assists (83), steals (73) and blocked shots (31). Freshman guard Jennifer Escobido (Norwich Free Academy/Lisbon, Conn.), who received honorable mention to the Empire 8 all-star team, is shooting 57.6 percent from the floor -- the second-highest single-season mark ever by a Bomber and is one of five Ithaca players averaging between seven and nine ppg.
Sophomore center Devin Shea (St. Basil Academy/Huntingdon Valley, Pa.) averages 8.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game while blocking 20 shots. Junior guard Jessica Farley (Pine Valley Central/South Dayton) and senior guard Jordan Confessore (South Brunswick/Kendall Park, N.J.) are both averaging 8.0 ppg. Farley, the team's top free-throw shooter at 87.2 percent, has collected 62 assists and 47 steals. Confessore is shooting 51.6 percent from the floor while collecting 39 assists and 28 steals. Freshman guard Kathryn Campbell (Greene/Greene) averages 7.4 points and 2.0 assists per game with junior guard Jacqueline Shinall (Joel Barlow/Redding Ridge, Conn.) averaging 1.8 assists per game.