Bombers Remain Atop Empire 8 Standings; Nazareth, Stevens and Utica Claim Victories
Ithaca 65, Hartwick 55
The Ithaca College women’s basketball team (19-2, 10-1 Empire 8) posted a 65-55 victory over Empire 8 foe Hartwick (16-6, 8-3 Empire 8) on Friday night.
Ithaca owned a 28-26 lead at intermission and dominated the first four minutes of the second stint, piecing together 11 straight to secure a double-digit advantage, 39-26. Facing a 45-32 deficit at 11:50, Hartwick drained back-to-back threes en route to nine unanswered to cut within four. The Bombers outlasted the Hawks in the long run. Ithaca regained a double-figure difference with one minute lingering in the game and went 5-for-6 from the charity stripe to secure the victory.
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Stevens 60, Elmira 47
Stevens freshman guard Miranda Ripken finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while junior forward Avis Benjamin tallied 15 points, seven boards, four steals and two blocks. Stevens improved to 12-10 overall and 6-5 in the Empire 8 with a 60-47 win over Elmira College on Friday.
The Ducks are currently tied for fourth in the standings with St. John Fisher but hold the tie-breaker advantage on the head-to-head match up previously defeating the Cardinals in overtime a month ago. The two teams will face each other again on Feb. 16.
After Elmira opened a 13-10 lead 8:52 into the game, the Ducks made their game-deciding run to close the first half, outscoring the Soaring Eagles 21-3 to take a 31-16 lead into the intermission.
Elmira was able to quickly cut the Stevens lead to 10 points 1:01 into the second half, but the Ducks did a nice job withstanding small runs to maintain a solid lead. After junior guard Jessica Zoltowski, who scored a team-high 16 points for Elmira, cut the Ducks' lead to single digits at the 10:11 mark, a three-pointer from junior guard Jen Thompson quickly put Stevens back up 11 (48-37). The Ducks extended the margin to 15 with 5:24 on the clock behind a Krause jumper, and the Soaring Eagles did not threaten the rest of the way.
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Utica 64, Houghton 42
The Utica College women's basketball team avenged a mid-season loss at Houghton by jumping out to an early lead and never looking back in the rematch Friday night as the Pioneers topped the visiting Highlanders 64-42 on the hardwood at the Clark Athletic Center.
The Pioneers burst out to an 18-11 lead, behind a combined 17 points from Meghan Fiore, Samantha Stayer and Marissa Kahane in the first 10:50 of the contest. The Pioneers did not slow as the half approached and at one point Stayer knocked down three consecutive lay-ups, to spark a 15-2 Utica run in a span of 7:10, to give Utica a convincing 35-17 lead at the half.
UC also scored the first nine points of the second half, to cap an 18-0 run that started in the first half and spanned into the second, for a total of 5:12. Utica kept the pressure on and led by as many as 32 points, 61-29, with 4:41 left in the game.
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Nazareth 52 Alfred 50
Nazareth held off a late rally by Alfred to defeat the Saxons 52-50 in women’s basketball Friday night. This was the Golden Flyers’ second win in two weeks over the Saxons. Nazareth improved to 8-14, 5-6 in the Empire 8 and is currently sixth in the conference standings. Alfred is now 6-16, 0-12.
Alfred went on a 10-2 scoring run in the final 3:36 of the game to chip away at a 10-point Nazareth lead. An insurance basket by
Veronica Peck with: 57 seconds left in the game gave the Golden Flyers a four point cushion.
The Saxon’s came within two points with :35 seconds left. On the next possession, Nazareth ran out the shot clock and giving Alfred the ball back with :04 left in the game. The Golden Flyers defense prevented the Saxon’s from getting a final shot off to seal the win.
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