TROY, N.Y. – The Skidmore College women's basketball team limited host Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) to 15 points in the second half and defeated the third-seeded Engineers, 50-42, on Tuesday evening in the First Round of the Liberty League Tournament.
- Skidmore (12-14) will play second-seeded RIT on the road on Friday, February 27. The Thoroughbreds will play in their fourth consecutive Liberty League Semifinal – now the longest active streak in the conference.
- Sophia Martinez and Claudia Schneider led Skidmore with 11 points apiece. Martinez added two assists, a steal, and three rebounds, while Schneider collected nine boards and collected one assist, one steal, and one block.
- Sara Hastie and Ruby Krop both finished with three steals and two blocks as the Thoroughbreds forced 18 RPI turnovers and blocked six shots.
- Siena Smith led RPI (17-9) with 17 points, eight rebounds, and two assists.
- The hosts led by four toward the end of the first quarter when four RPI turnovers in a row and a Stella Criniti layup before the buzzer gave Skidmore the lead at 14-12. It was Skidmore's first lead since 4-2.
- Skidmore led by as many as nine in period two, but RPI rattled off the last nine of the half capped by a Tyler Hormazabal 3-pointer, to tie it up at 27 at the break.
- Skidmore then held the Engineers to 21.4 percent shooting (3-of-14) in the third period while scoring 14 of its 16 points in the paint to outscore RPI 16-8 in the period.
- The Thoroughbreds scored on four possessions in a row in the middle of the third to highlight a 10-0 run that gave them the lead for good.
- Skidmore didn't allow RPI to string buckets together down the stretch and limited the Engineers to only two points over the last 5:52 for the 50-42 final.
- RPI finished at 12 percent (3-of-25) from 3-point range, and 28.1 percent (16-of-57) from the field.
- Skidmore went 35.6 percent (21-of-59) from the field.
- RPI outrebounded Skidmore, 45-38, but the Thoroughbreds had a 36-20 advantage in the paint.
UP NEXT
Skidmore will head to RIT for a semifinal clash on Friday. Game time is TBD. The winner plays for the title on Sunday. For Skidmore, it would be at either Union or St. Lawrence.