CANTON, NY – The RIT women's basketball team (8-11, 2-8 Liberty League) lost at Liberty League leader St. Lawrence University (15-4, 10-1 Liberty League) Saturday afternoon, 81-68. The Tigers led at halftime, but could hang on in the second half.

RIT shot 44.6 percent from the floor on 29-of-65 shooting. The Tigers struggled from behind the arc, shooting 2-of-12 from 3-point land. Sarah Wolcott (Cohocton, NY/Wayland-Cohocton) led RIT with a career-high 18 points to go along with six rebounds and two assists. Jessica Glaz (Rockaway Beach, NY/Scholars Academy) tallied 13 points off the bench, while Ashlynn Palmitesso (Fulton, NY/G. Ray Bodley) chipped in 12 points. Merissa Maiorano (Rochester, NY/Pittsford Mendon) tallied eight points and seven rebounds, while Amanda Olsen (Glen Mills, PA/Archmere Academy) tallied nine points for the Tigers.

Kara McDuffee was one of five Saints to score in double figures with 21 points to go along with 15 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Allison Cady and Cara Waterson each scored 13 points, while Lauren Quattrocchi and Jenny Scudder each scored 12.
 
RIT fell behind 10-2 early in the first half on the strength of an 8-0 burst by the Saints. Waterson converted a pair of free throws 4:49 into the game giving St. Lawrence an early eight-point bulge.
 
The Tigers responded with a 19-6 run, taking the lead for the first time on a pair of free throws by Palmitesso with 12:52 to play in the opening half. Glaz gave RIT its largest lead of the half with her bucket with 8:15 to play, making it 21-16 Tigers.
 
St. Lawrence answered back, outscoring RIT 13-4 over a 5:36 span in the middle portion of the half, tying the score at 29-29 on a jumper by Cady with 3:19 to play. After an Olsen bucket gave the Tigers a 31-29 lead, Quattrocchi drained a three with 2:21 to play giving the Saints a 32-31 lead.

RIT scored the final six points of the half to take a 37-32 lead into halftime. Wolcott, Glaz and Olsen each scored in the final minutes for RIT, the last coming from Olsen with nine seconds to play in the half, equalling the Tigers largest lead of the game.

The Tigers shot 48.5 percent from the floor in the first half on 16-of-33 shooting. Wolcott and Glaz each scored eight first-half points for RIT, while Palmitesso and Olsen each scored seven.

RIT increased its lead to six points on four occasions early in the second half, including a conversion of an old fashioned three-point play from Palmitesso just 50 seconds into the half. Her layup with 15:12 to play gave the Tigers a 46-40 lead. After a Quattrocchi bucket gave the Saints a slim lead, Taylor Burns (Rochester, NY/Greece Odyssey) answered with a 3-pointer, giving RIT a 49-48 lead.

The Tigers last lead came with 6:42 to play when Maiorano scored off a feed from Wolcott, giving the Tigers a 60-58 lead. Wolcott's bucket with four minutes to play cut the St. Lawrence lead to four points, but the Saints outscored RIT 13-4 over the final four minutes to pull away for the 13-point win.

RIT falls to 7-23 all time versus St. Lawrence.

RIT returns to action on Friday, Feb. 6 when the Tigers host Liberty league foe Rensselaer at 6 p.m. on the floor of Clark Gymnasium.