ITHACA, N.Y. — The Ithaca College women's basketball team battled throughout Friday night's Liberty League contest but ultimately fell to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 60–49, at Ben Light Gymnasium on Friday evening.
RPI jumped out to a 4–0 lead early, but the Bomber defense held strong, highlighted by several key defensive rebounds and a notable block from
Tori Drevna that helped slow the Engineers' momentum. Ithaca got on the board 2:45 into the opening quarter on a corner three‑pointer from
Madison Gill.
As RPI continued to pressure offensively, the Bombers responded with back‑to‑back baskets from
Mary Bernat and
Zoraida Icabalceta, cutting the deficit to 11-8 with just over three minutes remaining in the quarter. A late surge saw Icabalceta knock down a clutch three-pointer followed by a Bernat layup, bringing Ithaca within four, 17-13, with one minute left before the Engineers carried a 19-13 lead into the second.
Natalie Tucker opened second‑quarter scoring with a mid‑range jumper, keeping the Bombers within reach at 19-15. Bernat later connected on a deep two with 4:52 remaining in the half to pull Ithaca within three, 21-18. Drevna tied the game at 21‑21 with a three-pointer with just under four minutes remaining, and
Aila Dervisevic later answered for the Bombers with 2:16 left to knot the game again at 23 points apiece. RPI closed the half on a late run, however, sending Ithaca into the locker room trailing 28-23 despite holding a 22-18 rebounding advantage at the break.
Drevna opened the scoring in the second half with a layup to trim the deficit to three. After an RPI basket,
Grace McNamara responded with a bucket of her own as the Engineers continued to maintain separation. With 4:45 left in the third quarter,
Madalyn Barrows came up with a loose ball under the basket and immediately converted to make it 36-29. Icabalceta followed with a jump shot off an assist from Gill with 1:35 remaining to cut the margin to eight, 39-31, and Bernat scored off a Dervisevic assist in the final seconds to bring Ithaca within six. A late RPI three‑point play pushed the Engineers' lead to 42-33 heading into the fourth.
Dervisevic opened fourth quarter scoring to energize the Bombers, and Tucker later floated in a jumper at the seven‑minute mark off a McNamara assist to make it 48-37. Icabalceta kept the pressure on with a driving layup to bring Ithaca within nine, then drilled a corner three with 1:35 remaining as the Bombers trailed 53–-4. Ithaca's final baskets came from Gill, but RPI closed out the game from the free throw line to seal the 60-49 decision.
Ithaca received strong individual efforts throughout the lineup, led by
Zoraida Icabalceta, who finished with a team-high 12 points to go along with two steals and three rebounds.
Madison Gill followed with 11 points, adding four rebounds and a steal.
The Bombers close out their five game homestand on Saturday when they host Bard College at 2 p.m. inside Ben Light Gymnasium.
