Fisher, Ithaca and Stevens Win

1/25/2014 7:47:00 PM

St. John Fisher 88, Alfred 65 (Box Score)
The St. John Fisher College women's basketball team scored a season-high 88 points, as the Cardinals cruised to an 88-65 win over Alfred University on Saturday afternoon at Fisher's Bobby Wanzer Court.

With the win, Fisher moves to 11-6 overall and 4-3 in the Empire 8, while Alfred drops to 5-11, 0-6.

Fisher jumped out to a 6-0 lead, but Alfred answered right back and led by six at 18-12 with 12 minutes left in the first half.
 
Fisher took the lead for good with a 9-0 run over the next two minutes with Portia Velasco and Claire Walsh scoring all the points during the pivotal run.

The Cardinals led 39-35 at the break.  Alfred cut the lead down to five points at 53-48 with 13 minutes left, but Walsh scored 10 straight for the Cardinals to help Fisher pull away.

Velasco led Fisher with 23 points and six assists, while Walsh scored a season-high 15 points, including three 3-pointers.  Camaryn Buckner totaled 14 points, while Sydney Bloomstein finished with 12 points and team-high eight boards.


Stevens 71, Utica 60 (Box Score)
The Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team led for the entirety of a 71-60 Empire 8 Conference victory at Utica College on Saturday afternoon. Four Ducks scored in double-figures to help Stevens to its 11th win of the season and even its record at 4-4 in the Empire 8.

Freshman Erica Guketlov drained a three-pointer 1:17 into the first half to put the Ducks ahead, 3-0, and they would never relinquish the lead for the rest of the contest. Guketlov finished the outing with 10 points, five assists and three rebounds.

After a made free throw from Utica (5-12 overall, 0-8 Empire 8) on the next possession cut the score to 3-1, the Pioneers could never get closer than a three-point difference from the 17-minute mark of the first half to the end of the game.

Stevens shot 45.5-percent from the field in the matchup on 30-for-66 shooting, while Utica was held to just 30.9-percent (17-for-55). For the second consecutive game, Stevens was on the wrong end at the foul line, as it was outshot 25 to nine, but the disparity did not prove to be a difference maker on Saturday.

Senior Avis Benjamin paced all players with 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting for the field to go along with four boards and two assists. Sophomore Kaitlyn Astel also reached double-digits for the Ducks, as she added 11 points in 23 minutes off the bench. Astel went 5-for-13 overall and pulled down a pair of rebounds.

Sophomore Miranda Ripken was the fourth player to eclipse double-figures with 10 minutes and tied for the team lead with six rebounds to go along with three assists. Classmate Dylan Krause also snatched six boards and tallied six points as well.

Senior Lisa Tessitore chipped in seven points (3-for-5), three steals and two rebounds in the win.


Ithaca 70, Hartwick 59 (Box Score)
The Ithaca College women's basketball team (14-4, 7-1 Empire 8) pieced together a potent second half to defeat visiting Hartwick (14-4, 7-1 Empire 8), 70-59, Saturday afternoon at Ben Light Gymnasium. The Bombers outscored the Hawks 50-31 in the second to win their 50th game against Hartwick. Ithaca, who is 31-4 since 1999 over the Hawks, owns a 50-18 advantage in the series history dating back to 1972.

Ithaca joins Hartwick in a tie for first place in the league. Having not yet played the Bombers or Hawks, Elmira (11-3, 4-1 Empire 8) also has just one Empire 8 loss.

Ithaca won its sixth straight game to snap a six-game Hawk winning streak. Hartwick forced seven Ithaca turnovers in the first to hold a 28-20 lead at halftime. Ithaca shot a meager 32.1 percent in the first before hitting 15-of-26 in the second, good for a 57.7 percent performance from the field.

The Hawks, who drained a three in the first minute of play, led entire first 30 minutes of play. They held an eight-point edge at intermission. It was a 25-20 game with 1:36 lingering in the first, but three Ithaca turnovers in the final minute stretched the Hawks' lead to 28-20.

An and-one play in the first minute of the second secured Hartwick its largest lead of the game, 31-20. Seven unanswered Bomber points followed. Ithaca had the game within two at 13:30, but it was a Mary Kate Tierney three-pointer at the 10-minute mark that knotted action at 42. The score bounced back-and-forth over the next three minutes. A Ali Ricchiuti trey at 6:35 sealed Ithaca's infinite advantage and tipped off a 9-0 Bomber run. Hartwick pulled within four on back-to-back threes, 63-59, with 49 ticks remaining in the game. Holding the Hawks scoreless, Ithaca went 7-for-8 from the charity stripe down the stretch to secure the win.

Strong free-throw shooting helped the Bombers clinch the game. Ithaca was 19-for-24 (79.2%) for the game and took just two in the first frame.

SCHOOL	CONF	OVERALL
Hartwick	7-1	14-4
Ithaca	7-1	14-4
Elmira	4-1	11-3
St. John Fisher	4-3	11-6
Stevens	4-4	11-6
Nazareth	2-4	7-9
Alfred	0-6	5-11
Houghton	0-0	5-11
Utica	0-8	5-12
Houghton is an NCAA provisional member and is not eligible for postseason. Games against the Highlanders will not impact conference records/standings.