Poughkeepsie, NY – Sophomore Sierra McDermed (San Antonio, TX) led four players in double-figures with 20 points and closed a double-double with 10 rebounds as the Vassar College Women's Basketball team pushed its winning streak to seven games with a 64-51 triumph over Liberty League preseason favorite Skidmore Wednesday evening.

Wednesday's win improves Vassar to 8-1 overall on the season and to 3-0 in league play, while Skidmore slips to 6-3 and 2-1 against conference rivals.

First Half

• Vassar opened the game on a 12-3 run sparked by three-pointers from Nayia Kurnik (Fallbrook, CA) and Julia Harvey (Delmar, NY).
• Skidmore pulled to within five points on a Julia Blanck bucket with 2:12 left in the first quarter before Vassar tallied seven of the final nine points of the quarter to grab a 19-9 lead through 10 minutes of play.
• Vassar shot an even 50-percent from the floor in the opening quarter, hit on three triples and went a perfect 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.
• Another Kurnik triple early in the second frame gave the Brewers a 22-12 lead with 8:39 left before halftime.
• The Thoroughbreds came back with seven straight points, highlighted by an Emmy Plage bucket, to slice their disadvantage to 22-19.
• Skidmore would pull to within a single point twice in the final 3:25 of the first half, but a pair of Kurnik free-throws with 70 seconds left in the second frame sent the Brewers into the intermission with a 30-27 advantage.
• Vassar cooled to 30-percent shooting in the second stanza, but connected on all four of its free-throws.
• After shooting under 30-percent over the opening 10 minutes, Skidmore went 7-for-19 in the second period and connected on a pair of three-pointers.

Second Half

• Vassar faced its first deficit of the game early in the third quarter when a pair of Blanck free-throws gave the visitors a 31-30 lead just 1:38 after the intermission.
• Vassar quickly responded with a three-point play from Bella Tawney (Simsbury, CT) to regain a 33-31 lead.
• After the Thoroughbreds came back and knotted the score at 33-33, Vassar scored the next eight points, highlighted by four points from Tawney, to surge in front 41-33 with 3:28 left in the quarter.
• Skidmore pulled back to within 41-37 late in the period, before a McDermed triple and a three-pointer at the horn from Maddie Ahearn (Bethlehem, PA) sent Vassar to the final period with a 48-37 advantage.
• The Brewers went 5-for-12 from the floor in the third quarter, including a pair of triples.
• Vassar expanded its lead to a game-high 16 points on a Tawney bucket and another three-pointer from McDermed in the first 90 seconds of the fourth quarter.  
• Skidmore got its disadvantage under double-figures just once in the final period, before a Tova Gelb (Sharon, MA) bucket pushed the Brewers back in front 55-44 with 5:46 left to play.
• A McDermed lay-in with 94 seconds grew the Brewers' lead back to 64-49 before one final Skidmore jumper cut the final decision to 13 points.
• Vassar finished the final stanza 6-for-11 from the floor and connected on two more three-pointers.

For The Brewers

• McDermed matched the game-high with 20 points, going 6-for-11 from the floor, including 4-for-6 from three-point range. McDermed hauled in a season-high 10 rebounds to close a double-double and added an assist, a steal and two blocks.
• Tawney netted a season-high 13 points, hauled in seven rebounds, handed out three assists and swatted a pair of blocks.
• Kurnik finished with 12 points and four rebounds.
• Harvey chipped in 10 points, three rebounds and a pair of helpers to the winning effort.
• Gelb collected nine rebounds and led the team with four assists.

For The Thoroughbreds

• Blanck led Skidmore with 20 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two steals and a pair of blocks.
• Plage came off the bench to score 10 points.
• Becca Horger led the team with three assists and five steals while contributing six points to the offensive effort.

Game Statistics

• Vassar shot 44.4-percent from the floor and an efficient 47.1-percent from three-point range.
• Skidmore was held to 31.3-percent shooting overall and a 4-for-19 effort from behind the arc.
• Vassar went 16-for-17 from the free-throw line, outscoring the Thoroughbreds by 11 from the stripe.
• Skidmore held the advantage in second chance points 15-4, points off of turnovers, 13-7, and points in the paint 24-22.

What's Next

• Vassar is off from game action until traveling to Rutgers-Newark on December 30.
• Skidmore hosts Mount Saint Mary College of New Year's Eve.