CORTLAND, N.Y. – Ali Ricchiuti scored 18 points, 16 in the second half, as Ithaca edged Cortland, 64-61, to hand the Red Dragons their first loss of the season. Both teams are now 4-1 on the season.
Ricchiuti hit 7-of-11 shots, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Jordan Beers scored 16 points, Keri Steele finished with 10 rebounds and three assists and Erin Woop dished out five assists for the Bombers, who were an NCAA tournament quarterfinalist last season.
Cortland was led by sophomore Cassidy Chapko's (Valley Falls/Hoosic Valley) 21 points. She connected on 4-of-8 3-pointers and 8-of-15 total shots from the floor. Junior Brittney Dumas (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow) finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds for her fourth double-double in five games and also shared the team lead with three assists. Seniors Erin Wolstenholme (Oneonta) and Brittany Rando (Owego/Owego Free Academy) scored eight points apiece.
Ithaca took the lead for good at 40-39 on a Beers' layup with 13:47 left, but the game remained tight the rest of the way. Cortland closed to within 48-46 on a Rando jumper with 9:31 left but missed two shots to either tie or take the lead.
The Red Dragons eventually were within 54-53 after a Rando 3-pointer with 5:41 left, but neither team scored again until Ricchiuti hit a foul shot with 2:07 left. Cortland turned the ball over on its next possession and Steele hit a trey with 1:22 left to put the Bombers up 58-53.
Chapko, however, answered with a 3-pointer with just under 52 seconds left to cut Ithaca's lead to 58-56. Ithaca ran the game clock under 30 seconds on its next possession and Francesca Cotrupe made a layup off a Steele feed with 28 seconds remaining to put Ithaca up by four. Cortland missed a 3-pointer on its next trip down the floor and Samantha Klie helped seal the win with two free throws at the 11-second mark. The teams each made two foul shots after that and Chapko's long 3-pointer at the buzzer created the final margin.
Cortland jumped out to a 10-0 lead 5:07 into the game, with Chapko scoring five of the points. Ithaca eventually tied the game at 19-19 with 9:08 left on a 3-pointer by Beers – her third triple in a 2-minute span.
The Bombers led once in the first half at 26-25 on Erin Ferguson's jumper with 1:19 left, but senior Rae Frasier (Schenectady) made a jumper with three seconds left to give Cortland a 27-26 halftime advantage. Cortland's largest lead in the second half was 35-31 with 18:01 remaining after back-to-back threes by Wolstenholme and Chapko.
Cortland begins its SUNYAC schedule at home versus Buffalo State on Friday at 7:30 p.m.