ITHACA, N.Y. – Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament, Grace Cannon and senior Cara Volpe combined for 41 points to guide the Ithaca College women's basketball team to a hard-fought win over St. Lawrence for their third consecutive Liberty League title. A 42-25 second half rally by the Bombers, spearheaded by several clutch plays by Emily Dorn secured the 70-58 victory. With the win, Ithaca improved to 24-3 overall and IC will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament – the selection show will be held on their website at 2:30 p.m. tomorrow.
 

Inside the Box Score

• The Bombers' veteran core dominated Ithaca's offensive attack as head coach Dan Raymond's starting five contributed nearly 75% of the team's 70 points. Grace Cannon filled the stat sheet with 26 points, five rebounds, and five steals, while Cara Volpe added 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting.
• Emily Dorn provided the spark the Bombers needed off the bench, adding nine points and five rebounds in 22 minutes.
• Lindsey Albertelli anchored the defense with eight rebounds and a steal. Sophomore Hannah Polce added seven points in 11 minutes as well.
• The Bombers shot 26-of-60 from the field, scoring 22 off of St. Lawrence turnovers. Ithaca also held the advantage in the paint, outscoring the Saints 38-34.
• While SLU shot 42.1% from the field, the Bombers defense remained lockdown from beyond the arc, holding the Saints to just 22.7%. Ithaca forced 20 turnovers and secured 12 steals in the contest.

How it Happened

• The Bombers and Saints opened up the first quarter trading baskets, but a Dylan Watkiss three pointer followed by a Katie Frederick block gave SLU an early 7-2 edge. Grace Cannon responded with seven straight points for IC – five of which came following steals. The back and forth continued for the next few possessions until a Grace Cannon block in transition followed by an easy fast break bucket. A few possessions later, a Melissa Buxton steal ended with a Cara Volpe layup, but Ava McCann was there to respond with a quick trey to keep their 20-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.
• Ithaca opened the second quarter with a shifty inside pass from Megan Yawman to give Melissa Buxton a quick bucket inside, then back-to-back layups by Cara Volpe cut the SLU lead to four. The Saints' starting core was firing on all cylinders with Olivia Middleton and Ava McCann converting threes to push their lead to double digits. Following a timeout on the floor, Lindsey Albertelli and Grace Cannon scored on quick baskets to cut the lead back to five with 3:12 to play in the first half. Ithaca finished the half with three crucial stops on defense and a pair of made free throws by Emily Dorn, but a quick Katie Frederick layup kept the lead at five heading into the locker room.
• After another early Katie Frederick basket, Grace Cannon started the second half with three straight buckets to bring the game to a single game possession. Shortly after, Cannon converted an and-one to give IC a 39-38 lead.
• Two steals by Cara Volpe and a quick dish out to Camryn Coffey for three gave Ithaca a 44-40 advantage with 4:13 to play in the third quarter, however a corner trey by Ava McCann a few possessions later brought it right back to a one-score game. The Volpe-Polce connection was on full display at the end of the quarter, with Cara first finding Hannah for an emphatic corner three, then once again off an inbound for a sideline jumper as the quarter ended.
• The Bombers and Saints continued to trade baskets into the final period, but a putback layup by Cannon proved to be the shift in momentum that Ithaca needed. Shortly after that, the graduate student grabbed her fourth steal and found Cara Volpe in transition for an easy bucket to keep a 56-54 advantage. Ava McCann responded with a stepback three for St. Lawrence to take back the lead before heading into a timeout with 3:27 left in regulation.
• Emily Dorn came up clutch, converting back-to-back buckets and secured two crucial defensive rebounds, which led to a Camryn Coffey three to extend the IC lead to six with 2:15 to play.

• Just over a minute later, Dorn hit another layup then proceeded to pull in a crucial board to push the lead to eight. With 44.7 seconds until the final buzzer, Grace Cannon got her fifth steal of the contest and converted a free-throw to bring the Bomber lead to double digits. A missed Dylan Watkiss three sealed the deal for the Ithaca, as the lead jumped to twelve with 0:25 to go. The contest ended with a 70-58 victory for the Bombers.

The Bombers will wait and see who they will play in the NCAA Division III Tournament. The selection show will be held on NCAA.com at 2:30 p.m. tomorrow.