Box Score
TROY, N.Y. – Junior Kerry Hayes (Nashua, NH/Nashua North) led all scorers with 14 points as the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women’s basketball team defeated Vassar College, 67-43. The victory was the first Liberty League win of the season for the Red Hawks, who improve to 6-7 overall and 1-2 in the conference. The Brewers drop to 4-7 and 0-3 in league play.
Early foul troubles plagued both squads, keeping the game close throughout the first half. Vassar went up by six in the opening minutes, but RPI battled back to close the gap at 12:37 on a jumper by junior forward Elizabeth Barker (Suffield, CT/Cathedral), who led all first half scorers with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
The Red Hawks took their first lead of the game just under the eight-minute mark (12-10), but the Brewers came charging back, opening a four-point lead (19-15) on a pair of free throws from senior guard Elise Okusami (Olney, MD/Georgetown Day).
Vassar’s lead was short-lived as Rensselaer capitalized on several quick fouls to even things up and take a 31-24 lead into the halftime.
It was a lead the Red Hawks would not relinquish as the home team went up by as many as 22 behind ten second-half points from senior captain Missy Jackman (Danvers, MA/Danvers). Plagued by foul trouble as the clock wound down, the Brewers were unable to mount a comeback against RPI, which capitalized on a number of turnovers to secure the win.
In addition to Hayes, who also had four rebounds and three assists, the Red Hawks saw Barker post her sixth double double of the season on 12 points and a game-high 16 rebounds. Jackman added 12 points and senior captain Brittney O’Neal (Clinton, CT/The Morgan School) posted 10 points and five rebounds.
For Vassar, sophomore Emily Haeuser (South Portland, ME/South Portland) had 10 points and six rebounds. Okusami chipped in with eight points while senior Chelsea Katzenberg (Middlesex, VT/U-32) and freshman Eleanor Albert (Clinton, NY/Clinton) each had seven points.
Rensselaer returns to the court on Friday and Saturday at North Country rivals St. Lawrence (6pm) and Clarkson (2pm), respectively. The Brewers also return to action this weekend at Clarkson and St. Lawrence.
