Elmira Wins at Home; Ithaca Claims Road Victory
ELMIRA 62, Potsdam 47
The Elmira College women's basketball team moved back to .500 on the season after defeating SUNY Potsdam, 62-47, in their final game before the holiday break.
Danielle Cleary '18 poured in a game- and career-high 22 points and was one of four Soaring Eagles in double-digits on the afternoon.
Joining Cleary in double-figures were
Alex Balara '15,
Karli Pochkar '16, and
Kelsey Geisler '15. Balara turned in another well-rounded performance in her second game back this season, filling up the stat sheet on both ends of the floor. She scored 14 points, grabbed nine rebounds, handed out four assists, tallied five steals for the second consecutive game, and recorded two blocks. Pochkar recorded her second straight double-double, finishing with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Geisler rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points and also added six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block.
Balara made an immediate impact in today's action as she either scored or assisted on EC's first four baskets, helping the Soaring Eagles jump out to an early 9-3 lead. After Potsdam halted the run with a layup from Carli Reynolds, a trio of made free throws, two from Geisler and one from Cleary, as well as a layup from Balara made it a 14-5 game with 12:15 to play in the first half.
The Bears quickly answered to cut Elmira's lead to just two, 14-12 with 7:56 on the clock, with a 7-0 run of their own. But the Purple and Gold would not let Potsdam get any closer in the first half as a 10-0 run, sparked by a three-point play from
Karli Pochkar'16, stretched EC's lead to double-digits for the first time all game at 24-12. The teams traded baskets over the final few minutes of the first half as EC took a 26-16 lead into the locker rooms.
The Soaring Eagles picked up where they left off at the end of the first half, expanding their lead to 35-22 after a Cleary three-pointer with 15:02 on the clock. EC's advantage remained in double-digits for another four minutes until Potsdam's Colleen McNamara knocked down a jumper to make it a single-digit game for the first time since the start of the second half.
It was a nine-point game, 45-36, with 9:49 remaining in the second half, but Potsdam would not get any closer as the Purple and Gold caught fire from the field over the next four-plus minutes. EC would go on a 12-0 run, which included three-pointers from Geisler and Cleary, to break open a 21-point lead with only 5:42 left in the game. The Bears were able to cut into their deficit a bit over the final minutes, but EC made their free throws when it mattered and rolled to the 62-47 victory.
ITHACA 78, Rochester 67
The Ithaca College women's basketball team never trailed in a 78-67 victory at the University of Rochester on Saturday afternoon at Louis Alexander Palestra. Ithaca is now 6-1 on the season, while Rochester falls to 8-2.
The Bombers scored on their first possession of the game and quickly built a 15-point lead within the first five minutes of the contest, 18-3. Seniors
Francesca Cotrupe and
Ally Mnich each scored eight points in the opening run.
Rochester would close to within nine points over the next seven minutes, 24-13, with 8:43 left in the half, but Ithaca pushed its advantage back out to 13 points in less than two minutes. At the 5:44 mark, the Yellowjackets hit a jumper to pull within seven, but that was the closest they would get in the half, as the Bombers took a 40-32 edge into intermission.
Out of the break, senior
Ali Ricchiuti drilled back-to-back three-pointers to make the score 46-32 just 1:26 into the second half. Rochester tallied the next five points to get back to a single-digit deficit, 46-37, but Ithaca responded with a 12-1 run to put the game out of reach with a 20-point cushion, 58-38, with just over 11 minutes left in regulation.
Ithaca would hold onto at least a 10-point spread until there was 1:37 left in the matchup. They would regain the double-digit advantage on free throws to close out the non-conference tilt.
Mnich led all players with 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting and 3-of-5 from long distance. Cotrupe finished the game with 13 points and nine rebounds, while Ricchiuti added eight points, three assists and two steals.
Senior
Samantha Klie and junior
Keri Steele each contributed eight points on a combined 5-for-13 shooting. Freshman
Julie Yacovoni notched nine points in 15 minutes, while senior
Geena Brady pulled down a game-best 12 rebounds to go along with five points and three assists.
Sophomore
Erin Ferguson added six rebounds and two points for the Bombers.
Ithaca shot 41.3-percent (26-for-63) from the floor and 9-for-17 (52.9-percent) from three-point range. The Bombers also went 17-for-24 from the free throw line and held a 47 to 40 edge in rebounds.
Alfred State 56, HOUGHTON 53
The Women's Basketball team performed at a high level against the Pioneers of Alfred State in this afternoon's game. The Highlanders matched the Pioneers point for point the first period and rally for rally the second period. Houghton's 6-point rally in the last 34 seconds of the game did not suffice, falling short 56-53.
At the beginning of the first period, the two teams found themselves in a 10-8 run, with Houghton trailing. A 3-point shot by
Hannah Manwaring put the Highlanders ahead for a brief moment. Going point for point, the two teams tied on 4 different occasions. It was in the last 45 seconds of the period when
Maisie Pipher sunk two free throws to put the Highlander on top 23-21.
While the first 2 minutes of the second period were scoreless, thereafter the two teams had an 11-8 run, including 3 Manwaring 3-point shots. The 5-point, 34-29 lead began to dissipate due to Alfred scoring 13 points consecutively.
With an 8-point lead, the Pioneers maintained it by taking turns scoring with the Highlanders. It wasn't until the last 34 seconds of the game when the Highlanders earned 6 of those points back. Down 55-53 with 2 seconds left on the clock, Alfred confirmed the win with a free throw.
Regardless of the loss, the Highlanders outshot the Panthers in nearly every category.
Manwaring led the way with 20 points on the night, followed by Pipher with 17. Both Manwaring and Pipher combined, shot 66.7% at the free throw line.