ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT women's basketball team (8-8, 2-5 Liberty League) let a double-digit second half lead slip away in a 58-55 loss to visiting Vassar College (7-7, 2-3 Liberty League) at Clark Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.
 
Amanda Olsen (Glen Mills, PA/Archmere Academy) provided a great spark off the bench for RIT, scoring a career-high 16 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the floor to go along with seven rebounds. Merissa Maiorano (Rochester, NY/Pittsford Mendon) also had 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and added a game-high 12 rebounds.
 
Vassar's Amanda Drakeley, who entered the game leading the Liberty League in scoring, rebounded from a slow first half to score 21 of her game high 28 points in the second half. She went 11-of-19 from the field, while adding six boards, and two blocks. Colleen O'Connell added 10 points and three steals, while Alex Moon and Ariella Rosenthal added eight boards apiece.
 
The Tigers led by as many as 13 in the opening half before Vassar ended the half on a 10-4 run to cut RIT's lead to 27-20 at the break. Vassar opened the second half on a 14-4 run to take a three-point lead at 34-31 with 14:59 left in regulation on a 3-point play from Colleen O'Connell. Vassar would score RIT 24-8 over that stretch spanning both halves.
 
The Tigers would respond with a 19-6 burst of their own over an eight minute span to take a 50-40 lead on a jumper by Olsen with 7:57 left. Unfortunately for RIT, they would be outscored 18-5 the rest of the way, going cold from the field. Drakeley would score 11 of Vassar's 18 points during the run.
 
With the game tied at 55-55, Vassar would take the lead for good with 2:07 left on a free throw from Rose Serafini. RIT had several chances to take the lead over the final two minutes, but were unable to break through. With 17 seconds left, Draekeley made two free throws to put Vassar up 58-55. Jessica Glaz (Rockaway Beach, NY/Scholars Academy) and Ashlynn Palmitesso (Fulton, NY/G. Ray Bodley) would attempt 3-pointers on RIT's final possession, but could not get them to fall.
 
RIT shot 40.3 percent from the field (25-for-62), but were just 2-for-15 from 3-point range. RIT would attempt just three free throws all afternoon. Vassar, who entered the game as the top free shooting team in the Liberty League, made 18-of-22 from the charity stripe, including 11-of-12 in the second half. Vassar won the battle of the boards, 42-35.
 
Glaz chipped in with eight points and two boards for the Tigers, while Maria Edwards (Forrest Hill, MD/The John Carroll School) added five points, five assists, and two steals.

Vassar now improves to 7-0 all-time against RIT.
 
The Tigers return to action on Tuesday, with a road contest at league foe Union that gets underway at 6 p.m.