Women's Basketball Falls Short At Ithaca

1/16/2010 12:00:00 AM

ITHACA, N.Y. (January 16, 2010) – Three Ducks netted double-figures, but the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team fell short against Empire 8 rival Ithaca College, 62-59, at Ben Light Gymnasium in Ithaca, N.Y. With the loss, Stevens fell to 8-6 on the season with a 6-2 league ledger, while Ithaca improved to 12-4 on the year and a perfect 7-0 in conference play.

Ithaca got things going early, mounting a 5-1 run after the opening tip, capped off by an Elissa Klie (Wyckoff, N.J.) layup. Brittany Fuller hit Stevens' first field-goal at the 17:33 mark, but Klie answered with a jumper of her own on the Ithaca's ensuing possession to make it 7-3. Undeterred, Fuller nailed a three on the Ducks' next possession to cut the lead to one.

A Katherine Bixby (Philadelphia, Pa.) jumper upped the lead to three at 15:19, kick-starting an 8-0 Ithaca run over the next two minutes of action.

Stevens sophomore guard Dawn Garcia would end the Ducks' scoring drought with a three at 13:22 before a Fuller layup and a pair of Victoria O'Connor free-throws cut the deficit to four at 19-15.

Down seven just shy of the nine-minute mark, sophomore forward Jillian Barrett and O'Connor combine for five-straight points to make it 24-22. Trailing, 28-23, after a Bixby jumper, Garcia buried another trey to once again cut it to two, but Ithaca junior Lindsay Brown (Danbury, Conn.) hit a jumper after a Paige Armstrong layup to give the Bombers a four-point edge at the half.

Klie kicked-off a flurry of scoring to open up the second half, hitting a jumper on Ithaca's first possession, before Garcia responded with a three. Klie came back and hit another jumper the next time down the floor, but Stevens kept pace with a pair of Barrett and Fuller layups that cut the deficit to 36-35.

Down four with just under 18-minutes to go, Barrett hit another layup before a Garcia trey gave Stevens their first lead of the afternoon. Ithaca junior Jordan Confessore (Kendall Park, N.J.) momentarily helped the Bombers regain the lead at, 41-40, but Fuller hit a turnaround jumper in the lane to put the Ducks back on top – in what was quickly becoming a see-saw affair.

Down three after a Sarah Gehring layup, Ithaca netted back-to-back buckets, capped off by a Klie jumper to retake the lead. Fuller once again gave Stevens the edge with a basket at 12:07, but the Bombers rattled off a 12-2 run over the next six and a half minutes to take a 57-48 lead.

But beginning with an Armstrong layup, the Ducks mounted a furious rally, netted eight unanswered points to make it 57-56 with 1:44 remaining. But Bixby would make it a three-point game with a jumper at 1:18.

Down four after a Bixby free-throw with 14 seconds left, Gehring pushed the ball up-court, finding Garcia on the wing, who buried a three to pull Stevens within one. Despite a pair of Bixby free-throws on the ensuing Ithaca possession, the Ducks had one final chance to tie the game, but a Gehring misfire as time expired sealed the Ducks fate.

Fuller led the way for Stevens with 17 points and seven rebounds, while Armstrong finished with 10 points and 11 boards. Garcia added 15 points, four assists, and five boards in the loss.

Klie netted a team-high 12 points to pace Ithaca, while Brown and Bixby added 11 points apiece.

Stevens will return to action on Tuesday, January 19 at SUNY New Paltz.

The following is a play-by-play of today's game

First Half

19:03 – Armstrong kept the ball alive after a Barrett miss before making one of two from the charity stripe to open up scoring. Confessore responded with the game's first three on Ithaca's ensuing possession.

17:47 – Klie corralled the loose-ball and put it back in for two, before Fuller hit a runner to keep Stevens within a basket. Klie then hit with a jumper from the baseline, but Fuller once again kept Stevens close, burying a three from the corner.

14:44 – Up 11-8, Brown hit a three from the wing, forcing a Stevens timeout, while giving Ithaca a six-point edge. Bombers are now two-for-three from long distance in the early going.

14:12 – Bixby found Confessore down low for two. Ithaca then took advantage of a Stevens turnover with Brown hitting a three to make it 19-8.

13:22 – Garcia ends the Stevens drought with a three. Fuller then makes a steal and connects on a jumper from the elbow to pull the Ducks within six.

12:04 – O'Connor received a pretty pass from a driving Fuller and draws the foul. The junior connected on both free-throws to make it a four-point game.

10:14 – Riley Dunn (Bradford, Mass.) hit the Bombers' fourth three of the afternoon, but Barrett made a turnaround jumper on the next possession to keep the deficit to five.

8:05 – Barrett and O'Connor combined for the last five points to pull Stevens within two.

5:29 – Armstrong drew a foul down low before hitting one-of-two from the line to make it 26-23.

4:14 – Bixby drove to the hoop and banked it in for two, but Garcia responded with a three on the other end to make it a two-point game.

3:01 – Armstrong got blocked but stayed with it, putting it back up for two.

1:47 – Brown went coast-to-coast, laying it in for two to make it 32-28, while prompting a Stevens timeout.

Stevens Leaders at the Half
Points – Fuller 7, Armstrong & Garcia with 6
Assists – Garcia 3
Rebounds – Armstrong & O'Connor with 7

Second Half

19:36 – Klie scored the half's first points with a jumper before Garcia nailed her third three of the afternoon. Klie drained another jumper on the other end, but a Barrett free-throw coupled with a Fuller steal and layup brought Stevens within one at 36-35.

17:49 – Jessica Farley (South Dayton, N.Y.) netted a triple to increase the margin to four, but a Barrett layup and another Garcia gave Stevens its first lead of the day at 40-39 with 16:29 left.

16:04 – A Confessore jumper helped Ithaca momentarily regain the lead, but Fuller hit a turnaround jumper in the lane to give Stevens a 42-41 advantage. After a Barrett steal, Fuller found a cutting Gehring for an easy layup, giving Stevens a three-point lead.

13:17 – Devin Shea (Huntingdon Valley, Pa.) hit a layup to make it 44-43 before Klie drained another jumper to put Ithaca back on top.

12:07 – Fuller blocked but she stayed with it; collecting the loose ball and putting it back in for two to give Stevens a 46-45 lead.

9:18 – Brown ended an almost three-minute scoring drought, burying a three from the corner to make it, 48-46, Ithaca.

8:40 – After forcing stop, Bixby went coast-to-coast, laying it in for two to give the Bombers a four-point cushion, but Fuller responded with a layup of her own to trim the lead back down to two.

7:20 – Dunn nailed a three from the baseline, giving Ithaca a little breathing room and upping the lead to five. Shea then hit a jumper from the free-throw line after a Bomber defensive stop to make it 55-48.

5:31 – Dunn hit a jumper from the corner to make it a nine-point game, forcing a Stevens stoppage.

5:08 – Armstrong puts back a Barrett miss ending Stevens' three-minute field goal drought.

2:39 – Schuckers made a steal and laid it in on the other end to bring Stevens within five at 57-52.

2:09 – Ducks forced another steal after the timeout leading to an Armstrong layup. After the stop on the defensive end, Armstrong hit another layup to bring Stevens within one at 57-56.

1:17 – Bixby hit a jumper from the corner to make it a three-point game.

0:42 – Ducks forced another Ithaca turnover with the press but Stevens cannot convert on the offensive end.

0:14 – Bixby made one-of-two after a Stevens foul. Gehring pushed the ball up-court, finding Garcia on the wing for three. Ducks down 60-59.

0:08 – Bixby made both free-throws after a Ducks' foul. Gehring misfired from the top of the key as time expired.

Stevens Second Half Leaders
Points – Fuller 10
Assists – Armstrong 3
Rebounds – Fuller 5
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