Bombers' Record-Setting Season Comes to an End in Sweet 16 Nail Biter
Box Score
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – The 21st-ranked Ithaca College women's basketball team (27-3) suffered a 64-60 overtime setback to 19th-ranked Williams (25-5) in the NCAA Round of 16 on Friday night to conclude its record-setting season.
Williams held an 11-7 advantage in overtime to punch its ticket to the Elite Eight. The back-and-forth game featured 19 lead changes and nine ties. The Bombers, who were making their 10th NCAA appearance and second in the sectional semifinals, rewrote a one-point halftime deficit to end regulation, 53-53.
In its second overtime game of the season, Ithaca scored the first of the extra five on a
Kathryn Campbell (Wall, N.J./Wall) jumper. Williams scored four consecutive to lead 57-55 at 2:29. Senior
Devin Shea (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./St. Basil Academy) hit 2-for-2 from the line to knot action at 57, but the Ephs tallied on consecutive possessions to secure the lead for good with 50 ticks lingering. Junior
Mary Kate Tierney (Rochester, N.Y./Our Lady of Mercy) pulled action within two with a three ball of her own, but an Ephs' layup sealed the score at 64-60.
Shea finalized her career with a 15-point, nine rebound performance. Ranking third all-time at Ithaca with 125 career blocks, she had four during the contest. Tierney posted her fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 boards. Campbell, a junior, drained a game-high 22 points, including 4-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc.
The Bombers held a 40-34 rebound advantage. Fourteen of Ithaca's rebounds were on the offensive end resulting in 14 second-chance points. The Ephs drained 46.0 percent from the floor to the Bombers' 33.3 percent.
Campbell buried her fourth three to open the second half. Williams answered with an 8-1 streak for a 36-31 gap at the 16-minute mark. The Ephs scored three following a Shea jumper, but Ithaca rallied to net seven of the next eight points, highlighted by a Tierney elbow jumper and three from the right wing, to deadlock action at 40. Williams had a bucket before Ithaca pieced together a 7-4 run for a 49-46 margin at 4:07. The Bombers were trailing 53-51 at 1:25, but Shea, who was 9-for-10 from the charity stripe, hit two to bring the game to a 53-53 stalemate, a score that stood through the buzzer.
The first half had 11 lead changes. Through first 17 minutes of play, the largest differential stood at just three points.
Ally Mnich (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel) and Shea jumpers backed by a Campbell three from the left wing secured the Bombers a 27-21 gap at 2:38. The Ephs answered with seven consecutive, including a trey as time expired to lead 28-27 at intermission.
The loss snapped Ithaca's 14-game winning streak and halted its single-season wins record at 27.
Williams will face Whitman (23-5) who defeated 15th-ranked Emory (24-4) on Saturday at 7 p.m.