NORTHAMPTON, MA -- The RIT (2-0) women's basketball won the title of the 2015 Tyler Tip-Off Tournament with a 79-68 victory over host Smith College on Sunday afternoon. Freshman Tara Lynch (Green Township, NJ/Newton), who scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds against Smith, was named Tournament Most Valuable Player.

Junior Julia Bender (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) was named to the Tyler Tip-Off All-Tournament Team after tallying 11 points and 14 rebounds in the title game.

"Smith is a very good team who plays very hard," said RIT head coach Amy Reed. "I thought our kids matched that work-rate and then some. It was truly a team win."

RIT shot 38.6 percent from the floor on 22-of-57 shooting. The Tigers made 6-of-17 from behind the arc, and went 29-of-39 from the foul line. Jessica Glaz (Rockaway Beach, NY/Scholars Academy) led RIT with 20 points, including 9-of-13 from the foul line. Bender had a double-double, tallying 11 points and grabbing a team-high 14 rebounds. Lynch finished with 18, while Kara Birrell (Keego Harbor, MI/Walled Lake) chipped in with 11. 

"We played hard all 40 minutes today annd got solid contributions from a lot of different players," said Reed.

Kennedy Guest-Pritch led Smith with 15 points and nne rebounds, while Lauren Bondi added 14 points. Amanda Barriscale added eight points and eight rebounds for the Pioneers who shot 38.4 percent from the floor.

Erin Hanley gave Smith a four-point lead at the 4:02 mark of the first period on her bucket off an assist from Paige Marquez. RIT answered back with five straight points, taking a 13-12 lead on a jumper by Bender with 1:40 to play in the quarter. She scored three of the Tigers five points on the run, while Lynch added a bucket. The first quarter ended in an 18-18 tie.

Smith built a five-point lead on a layup from Barriscale early in the second quarter givng them a 23-18 lead. RIT responded with a 13-2 run, taking a 24-23 lead on a Taylor Burns (Rochester, NY/Greece Odyssey) basket with 7:41 to play in the half. The Tigers would extend their lead to six points on Glaz 3-pointer with 5:19 to play.

A Burns three with 55 seconds to play in the half gave the Tigers their largest lead of the half, at 38-31. Bondi drained a jumper for Smith at the buzzer, cutting the RIT lead to 38-33 at the half.

RIT opened the third quarter strong, taking a 44-36 lead on a layup by Glaz at the 7:37 mark. The Tigers opened the quarter with a 12-3 run, taking a 46-36 lead on a pair of Lynch free throws with 7:36 to play in the third. RIT would lead by as many as 13 points in the quarter, before a late run by Smith cut the RIT lead to 61-52 heading into the fourth.

Smith got to within three points of RIT in the fourth, the last coming at the 6:05 mark when Bondi converted a pair of free throws. Guest-Pritch cut the Tigers lead to 72-68 with 50 seconds to play on her jumper off an assist from Syndey Koh. The Pioneers tried extending the game by fouling RIT. But, the Tigers made 9-of-13 free throws down the stretch to seal the win and the title.

Smith held a 51-38 rebounding edge. RIT tallied 18 points off of 16 Smith turnovers, and scored 10 second-chance points. Bender led RIT with four assists, while Glaz and Olsen each had a block.

RIT returns to action on Friday, Nov. 20 when the Tigers face Hamilton College at 7 p.m. in Clinton, N.Y.