ROCHESTER, N.Y. (December 13, 2014) – Often times, it's as important what you do at the beginning of a game as it is at the end.  That proved to be true for the women's basketball team at Ithaca College against the University of Rochester in the Louis Alexander Palestra on Saturday afternoon.

Ithaca took advantage of an ice-cold start by Rochester, jumped ahead by 15 points, and went on to a 78-67 victory. The Bombers improved to 6-1 overall. Rochester is 8-2 overall.

Ally Mnich scored a game-high 19 points for Ithaca. Francesca Cotrupe had 13 points and nine rebounds. Four of Ithaca's five starters had eight points or more. Geena Brady scored five points, but grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked three shots.

 Al Leslie had a double-double for Rochester with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Ally Zywicki scored 11 points, and Tylar Guerrieri had 10.

Rochester hit just one of its first 13 floor shots as Ithaca stormed to an 18-3 lead in the first five minutes.  Mnich, who sank a pair of treys 20 seconds apart early in the period, scored eight points in the opening surge. Cotrupe also scored eight points.

Down by 16, 23-7, after Jordan Beers sank a three-pointer for Ithaca, Rochester scored seven straight to move within nine, 23-14, with less than nine minutes left. Zywicki made one free throw. Guerrieri hit a layup, Leslie converted two free throws, and Guerrieri sank an 18-footer from the right corner.

The Yellowjackets got as close as seven, 30-23, at the 5:44 mark when Emily Lewis hit a jumper. Mnich answered with her third trey of the half. It pushed the lead to 10. It was eight, 40-32, at halftime following a conventional three-point play  by Kelsey Hurley.

Ali Ricchiuti hit a pair of treys to open the second half for the Bombers. Ithaca moved in front by 14, 46-32.  Julie Yacovoni hit a three-pointer for Ithaca, then added a conventional three-point play, stretching the lead to 58-38, with 11:22 rem,aining. 

Leslie and Zywicki combined for eight points – four apiece – late in the second half as Rochester sawed the deficit to 10, 69-59.  It went as low as eight twice – at 1:37 on Lauren Deming's layup and with :54 left when Leslie made two free throws after drawing Brady's fifth foul.

Three Ithaca players combined for five made free throws in the last 43 seconds as the Bombers wrapped up the win.

Thanks to Brady's 12 rebounds, nine from Cotrupe, and six by Erin Ferguson, Ithaca held a 47-40 edge on the glass. The Bombers scored 21 second chance points on 13 offensive rebounds. Ithaca shot 41% from the floor for the game (26-63) and 52.9% outside the arc (9-17). Mnich had three treys. Ricchiuti and Yacovoni two apiece.

Rochester shot 35.6% from the floor for the game (21-59), 30% outside the rc (3-10). In the first half, the Yellowjackets made 10 of 32 from the field (31.3%). Leslie was 9-12 from the line. Zywicki hit 5-6 from the line and grabbed six rebounds. Rochester scored 13 points off 15 Ithaca turnovers.