ERIE, PA -- The RIT (1-0) women's basketball team opened the 2014-15 season in impressive fashion, beating host Penn State-Behrend 69-44 in the opening round of the Tip-Off Tournament hosted by the Lions Saturday evening. The Tigers jumped out to an 11-0 lead and never looked back as
Ashlynn Palmitesso (Fulton, NY/G. Ray Bodley) and
Merissa Maiorano (Rochester, NY/Pittsford Mendon) scored 14 points apiece.
Palmitesso tallied five of RIT's first 11 points, while
Sarah Wolcott (Cohocton, NY/Wayland-Cohocton) tallied four on the opening run. The Tigers led by as many as 18 points in the first half, and took a 44-27 lead into the break.
RIT shot 48.4 percent from the floor in the first half on 15-of-31 shooting. The Tigers scored 16 points in the paint, nine second-chance points and 12 points off of turnovers. Palmitesso led RIT with 14 first-half points, while Maiorano and
Julia Bender (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) each tallied eight.
The Tigers slowly built their lead to 25 points in the second half, outscoring the Lions 17-9 over the first 8:35 of the half. Freshman
Jessica Glaz (Rockaway Beach, NY/Scholars Academy) tallied five points, while Maiorano added a pair of buckets to pace a balanced Tigers attack in the run.
Amanda Olsen (Glen Mills, PA/Archmere Academy) gave RIT its largest lead of the game of 28 points on her bucket with 8:39 to play, giving the Tigers a 66-40 lead.
RIT shot 41.9 percent from the floor for the game on 26-of-62 shooting. The Tigers were 8-of-23 from behind the arc, and went 9-of-16 from the foul line. RIT held a 44-38 rebounding edge and assisted on 15-of-26 buckets.
Palmitesso and Maiorano led RIT with 14 points apiece. Bender finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while Glaz tallied eight points. Junior
Maria Edwards (Forrest Hill, MD/The John Carroll School) dished out a team-high six assists.
"I thought tonight was a good first effort," said RIT head coach
Amy Reed. "We got into some foul trouble early, but our bench stepped up and showed just how deep it is. Having multiple people step up at any time is nice."
RIT will face the winner between Kenyon and Washington & Jefferson in the championship game on Sanday afternoon at 3 p.m. in Erie, Pa.
