TROY, N.Y. – Nicole Conley made a three pointer with just over two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter to put Union College in front and the Dutchwomen went on to hold the lead and defeat Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) 53-50 in a Liberty League contest at East Campus Arena.
 
Union improves to 15-7 overall and 8-6 in the conference, while Engineers drop to 11-12 and 6-10. Both teams have two more games remaining in the regular season.
 
Rensselaer's Elizabeth Eckhardt broke a 43-43 tie with a jump shot with 2:49 to play, but Conley gave the visitor a 46-43 lead with a right wing three pointer. Union increased its lead to four points with the help of three free throws before RPI's Sam O'Keefe scored in the paint to make it 49-47 with just under a minute to play.
 
Four more points from the charity stripe put the Dutchwomen ahead by six points, 53-47, before the Engineers Courtney Lewis banked in three pointer with five seconds remaining.
 
Sophie Borg led Union in scoring with 13 points, along with six rebounds. Amber Raisner had 11 points, three rebounds and three assists, while Conley scored 10 points with five boards.
 
RPI was led by Celia Tomlinson's double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. LaKissa Martin had a team-high 13 points with six rebounds, while Ines Ortea had 10 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals.
 
The Engineers started the game well on both ends of the floor. After an Ortea layup opened the scoring, RPI forced a shot clock violation and then a steal, which Martin turned into two points from the free throw line. Ortea snagged a steal of her own and scored on a layup for a 6-0 lead five minutes into the game.
 
The Dutchwomen rebounded to score the next six points, including two baskets by Borg, and the quarter ended 13-10 in favor of the Engineers.
 
Union scored six of the first eight points of the second quarter and took its first lead on a basket by Raisner 2:45 into the frame. Joana Santos followed with a layup and Borg scored on a jumper for a 20-15 lead. Rensselaer's Eckhardt ended the run with a jumper, but Conley hit a three pointer for a 23-17 lead. Martin pulled the Engineers to within three points, but Union went on a 5-0 run for a 28-20 advantage with 1:36 left.
 
Tomlinson scored RPI's next four points, though Darby Leid had a three pointer in between and the Dutchwomen held a 31-24 lead at halftime.
 
Raisner had eight points and three assists in the first 20 minutes, while Borg scored six points for Union, which shot 57.1% (8 of 14) in the second quarter. Ortea had eight points and Martin scored seven for the Engineers.
 
RPI opened the second half on a 13-2 run with Martin scoring five points and Tomlinson notching four, including the tying basket 3:04 into the quarter. Her jumper at the 5:05 mark made it 37-33 for the home team. The Engineers maintained its lead for the remainder of the quarter, though it was never more than a four point advantage. They led 41-40 going into the fourth quarter.
 
The contest remained close throughout the final frame with Union earning the victory, its third straight. The Dutchwomen return to the court on Friday against Rochester Institute of Technology, while the Engineers host St. Lawrence University. Both games begin at 5pm.