ROCHESTER, NY — The RIT women's basketball team (11-7, 4-5 Liberty League) handed visiting William Smith College (13-4, 7-1 Liberty League) its first loss in league play, using a big fourth quarter run to win 71-59 at Clark Gym on Tuesday night.

RIT out-scored the Herons 30-18 over the final 10 minutes to snap a 41-41 tie and pick up a much needed league win. The loss snapped a seven-game winning steak for the Herons in league play to start the season.

RIT's Tara Lynch (Green Township, NJ/Newton) led all players with 21 points, addition to seven rebounds. Jessica Glaz (Rockaway Beach, NY/Scholars Academy) (19 points, four assists) and Cori Okada (Fullerton, CA/Troy) (11 points, seven rebounds, six assists) also helped to pace the RIT offense. Taylor Burns (Rochester, NY/Greece Odyssey) added eight rebounds and six points, and Amanda Olsen (Glen Mills, PA/Archmere Academy) pitched in with six points and five rebounds. Julia Bender (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) also had five points and five boards.
 
Mia Morrison kept the Herons in the game, recording a double-double with 20 points, a game-high 11 rebounds, two blocks, and two steals. Melanie Patterson also added 10 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
 
"Obviously it was a great win for us against an undefeated team (in league play)," said RIT head coach Amy Reed. "We got a lot of production out of a lot of different players tonight. I thought Tara (Lynch) and Jess (Glaz) played really well, and Julia (Bender) was great at the end of the game, hitting a really big three. Even though it was an off night scoring for Cori (Okada), she distributed the ball really well."
 
The game started as a defensive struggle, as neither team scored in the first four-plus minutes of play. The two highest scoring teams in the Liberty League were scoreless until Olivia Hughes hit a free throw, 4:05 into the game for William Smith. The first quarter ended 9-9, with William Smith shooting 20 percent from the floor, and RIT shooting 15 percent.

The Tigers opened the second on a 7-0 run, and out-scored the Herons 20-17 in the frame to lead 29-26 at the break. Glaz led both teams 12 points in the second quarter alone, on 5-for-7 shooting (2-for-2 from 3-point range).
 
The third quarter saw a similar defensive style as the opening quarter, as neither team could pull ahead. William Smith out-scored RIT 12-9 in the quarter, and Tara Lynch (Green Township, NJ/Newton) led the Tigers with six points in the stanza. Both teams had 41 entering the final quarter of play.
 
The fourth quarter was the deciding factor, as the Tigers would eventually pull away. The 3-pointer played a key role for RIT, as two straight long distance jumpers from Burns and Bender, gave RIT a 49-43 lead with 7:41 left. Defense was the key in the final four minutes, then Okada nailed a 3-pointer from the corner, putting RIT up 59-50 with 3:08 left. William Smith would come out trying to trap RIT in its own end, but clutch plays from Okada and Bender, paired with perfect free throw shooting, sealed the game. RIT was 10-for-10 from the line in the fourth quarter. RIT would use a 13-3 run to pull away late.
 
"We made big shots down the stretch and got some stops," said Reed. "We were able to create that separation that we needed, which we haven't been able to get in recent games."
 
RIT shot 37.3 percent from the field and 30 percent from 3-point range, while William Smith was 28.6 percent from the field and made just 3-of-20 shots from long range. Both teams were excellent from the foul line, as RIT shot 15-for-17 and William Smith was 16-for-18.
 
The Tigers are back on action this weekend, when they host Bard College on Friday and Vassar College on Saturday. RIT and Bard will tip at 6 p.m. Friday, before RIT and Vassar battle at 2 p.m. Saturday.