ITHACA, NY – Hartwick fell from the unbeaten ranks in the Empire 8 Conference with a 53-45 loss at Ithaca on Saturday at Ben Light Gymnasium. The game was a rematch of last season's conference championship game. The Hawks drop to 15-4 overall and 7-1 in the league standings. The Bombers improve to 16-2 and are a half-game in front of 'Wick in Empire 8 play with an 8-1 mark. 
            The game was a showcase of two of the top defenses in the country. The Bombers entered the game ranked 7^th nationally in scoring defense (46.2 ppg) with the Hawks ranking 18^th (48.5 ppg). As a result, both teams fought for every point and combined to force 34 turnovers. The Hawks would make only 28.5% (15-for-51) of their shots for the game. 
            "It was another good defensive battle," remarked Hartwick head coach Missy West after the game at IC. "Our turnovers hurt us as Ithaca scored 18 points off of them alone. We did a good job on the glass but we forced too many bad shots on offense."

            The Hartwick trio of Maria Foglia (Rensselaer, NY/Catholic Central), Brittney Dumas (Easton, CT/Joel Barlow), and Kate Purcell (Buffalo, NY/Mount Mercy Academy) combined to score 38 of the team's 45 points in the game. They also totaled 20 rebounds, five assists, and five steals.
            The Hawks would hold the lead for only 34 seconds today as a Foglia three-pointer gave the Hawks a 3-2 edge after two minutes and 10 seconds of action. A Devin Shea jumper at 17:16 would give IC the lead which it would maintain for the remainder of the contest.
            The Bombers held an 13-5 lead with under 13 minutes left, but seven straight Hartwick points trimmed it to one, 13-12, with five straight points coming from Foglia and a jumper from Dumas just over two minutes later. A Purcell layup with 9:57 remaining marked the final point for either team for the next 3:26 as the score remained at 15-14 IC's advantage at the six and a half minute mark.
            Seven consecutive Bomber points opened up a 22-14 lead before the two teams began trading baskets for the remainder of the half. Two Kathryn Campbell free throws put IC in front by its biggest total of 10 points, 28-18, with 1:28 to play before Lee Arduini (Albany, NY/Academy of the Holy Names) duplicated the feat at the other end to close out the first-half scoring with the hosts in front, 28-20.
            The Hawks were limited to just 6-of-25 (24%) shooting in the opening half with Foglia tallying eight points. The Bombers made 11-of-23 (47.8%) with Shea netting 10.
            Ithaca's lead grew to as many as 13 points inside two and a half minutes of the second half. Shea (5) and Mary Kate Tierney (4) scored all of the IC points in the early going as the Bombers led 37-24 with 16:17 left in the game.  
            Hartwick would not go quietly, though, as a big 13-2 swing over close to a five-minute span would cut the deficit to two points for the Hawks with 11:07 left. Foglia led the charge with seven points in the run for 'Wick. 
            After Dumas sank two from the line to make the score 39-37, the Hawks would get four opportunities to tie or take the lead. Unfortunately, they could not convert with two missed layups and a pair of turnovers on those possessions.
            Campbell instead drained a three-pointer with 8:23 on the clock to put her team up 42-37. After a Foglia free throw made it a four-point game, the Bombers began to pull away. IC would score six of the next seven points while the Hawks committed three turnovers and the Bombers were in front, 48-39, at 3:31.
            Dumas made it 48-41 with less than two and a half minutes to go but that was as close as 'Wick would get. The Bombers converted layups on each of their next two possessions to build a double-digit advantage, 52-41. Two Hartwick buckets with under a minute got it to 53-45, but the Hawks missed their final two shots with under 15 ticks left enabling IC to take the game.
             Foglia would make six of her 14 shots for a game-high 18 points and five boards for Hartwick, which ended the contest with a 34-32 edge in rebounds. Purcell tied for a game-high with eight boards and added team-bests of four assists and three steals. Dumas added 12 points and seven rebounds.
            Shea registered a team-high 17 points to go along with four blocks, two assists, and two steals. Campbell scored 13 points and pulled down five rebounds and Tierney recorded 12 points, six boards, five assists, and three steals.
            Hartwick is back on the road on Tuesday night at Stevens Institute of Technology in another Empire 8 Conference game. The Hawks were 59-57 winners over the Ducks on January 22.