Potsdam, NY – Four players finished in double figures for Rensselaer, including game-highs of 18 points and 10 rebounds by Elizabeth Barker, as the Red Hawks beat the Clarkson University Women’s Basketball team 60-50 in Liberty League action Friday night at Alumni Gymnasium.
The Golden Knights dropped to 6-18 overall and 1-12 in the Liberty League and close out the regular season on Saturday when they host Vassar. RPI improved to 18-5 and 10-3.
Both teams were hit by a rash of turnovers early on, and when they did get shots off the attempts weren’t finding the bottom of the net often. Through the first 10 minutes, the teams combined to shoot 5-for-27 from the floor, but eventually both the Knights and Hawks found their groove from the outside, especially in the final minute as both made 3-pointers on their final possessions.
Junior Michelle Reddinger (Baldwinsville, NY) led all scorers with eight points, making all four of her free throw attempts, while freshman Carey Turner (Clifton Park, NY) had four points and seven rebounds. For the Red Hawks, Elizabeth barker had five points and four rebounds and Caitlyn Charest added in five more points.
Rensselaer started off the second off with a run to push its lead to 10 points with just over four minutes expired from the clock, but Clarkson responded with a 17-2 run over the course of six minutes. The Knights took the lead on a 3-point play by Reddinger and extended the lead to five, but the Red Hawks came back to tie the game and took the lead a few minutes later, ending the game with a 12-2 run over the final minutes.
The Red Hawks had a strong advantage on the boards, 46-30, including 27 offensive rebounds, allowing the team to take 71 shots compared to just 38 by Clarkson. The Knights shot 44.7 percent from the field, while Rensselaer struggled to shoot at a 29.6 percent clip.
Reddinger finished with 15 points and 3 blocks for Clarkson, with Turner adding in 8 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists. Lauren Pluchino (Liverpool, NY) also contributed 11 points.
For the Red Hawks, Barker had 18 points and 10 boards, while Whitney Coleman added 12 points and 7 rebounds, including her 1000th career point in the second half. Caitlyn Charest added 12 points and Sarah Wetmore produced 10 points.
