ITHACA, N.Y. – The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's lacrosse team traded punches early with Ithaca this afternoon, but the Bombers' second-quarter surge proved decisive in a 20-8 setback at Higgins Stadium. 

RPI was led by a pair of two-goal performances from Beckett Houston, Ava Gilardone, and Quinn Wollard, while Audrey Silverman and Adelaide Hughes rounded out the scoring with one goal apiece. Kacey Pritts anchored the playmaking with a team-high four assists, and RPI went a perfect 16-for-16 on clears.

The Engineers came out sharp and struck first, as Houston opened the scoring with an unassisted finish. Ithaca answered with four straight goals to take a 4-1 lead, but RPI steadied quickly and closed the opening quarter with three consecutive tallies to pull even, 4-4, after 15 minutes. Wollard scored twice off feeds from Pritts, and Hughes capped the run with an unassisted marker in the final minute of the period. 

Ithaca seized control in the second quarter, outscoring the Engineers 7-1 to take an 11-5 advantage into halftime. Houston provided RPI's lone response in the period with her second unassisted goal, but the Bombers capitalized on several man-up opportunities during the stretch to create separation. 

RPI pushed back in the third. Gilardone sparked the Engineers with a goal off a Pritts assist, then added another unassisted finish as RPI trimmed the margin to 12-7 midway through the quarter. Ithaca answered late in the period to take a 13-7 lead into the final 15 minutes. 

Silverman opened the fourth-quarter scoring for the Engineers, finishing a Pritts assist early in the frame to make it 14-8, but Ithaca closed the game with six unanswered goals down the stretch to seal the result. 

The Engineers next face William Smith in a 4:00 pm road matchup on Friday in Geneva.