Leslie Havens, a third year Biomedical Engineering major, works to get a basket in January 14 game against St. Lawrence.
Max Hautaniemi

In basketball, regardless of level of play, two things are critically important: patience, and defense. Last Saturday night, both of these seemed to be absent from the RIT Women’s basketball team. On a night where Clark gym was half-full of RIT fans and SportsZone cameramen, one would think the game against Liberty League opponent St. Lawrence would be an action-filled ballgame.

This was not the case, as the Saints took advantage of an early second half offensive spurt and from there coasted to a 61-45 win. The lady Tigers did seem in control the game in the first half however, as they started out the contest trailing by as few as five. Third year Biomedical Engineering major Leslie Havens drilled a three-pointer with 3:19 left in the first to spark a 10-1 run to close the half with RIT up 23-18.

From there it was all downhill for RIT. Full of rushed shots and sloppy defensive mistakes, the Tigers never seemed to click again and the Saints used that to their advantage. They came out firing, outscoring RIT 27-10 in the first 12 minutes of the second, never letting their guard down as they led by as many as 19.

The Tigers also never got in sync with their rebounding well, as Saints forwards Katie Edgerton and Erica Sperria enjoyed solid rebounding performances of 10 and 6, respectively. The advantage of the Saints’ rebounding was clear by the end of the game as the totals were 52-39.

Many problems arose during the game, but it was clear that while RIT had three starters that scored in double figures, the bench was lacking, only able to manage 9 points throughout the game. Much of this can be accredited to poor shooting and a lack of stamina. The Tigers shot 16-58 from the field, finishing at 28 percent. St. Lawrence finished on a 22-64 performance, good for 34 percent.

After the game, RIT coach Amy Reed, now in her fourth year as the RIT coach, said her team played a good first half but needs be able to play full 40 minute games. “I think that the team is stronger than it’s ever been, but we need to be able to play two halves together.”

Havens, who finished the game with 10 points and six steals, agreed and noted that patience on defense along with better offensive execution is something the team needs to improve on. “We need to have more patience and work the ball more.”

Second year Biomedical Engineering major Kayla Wheeler also agreed, but hinted that the team should play at their own pace. She finished with 10 points and 5 rebounds, respectively.

Edgerton and St. Lawrence’s 6’2” forward Kelly Legg both had outstanding games, as they combined for 30 points. Edgerton flirted with a triple double, finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists.

With the loss, RIT falls to 5-7 overall and 1-2 in the Liberty League. The next game was played Sunday at Clark Gym against Liberty League foe Clarkson. RIT won that game, 62-53.