December 7, 2002

GENEVA, N.Y.—The Ithaca College basketball team spoiled the home opener of the William Smith College Herons this afternoon in Bristol Gym. The Bombers posted a 77-55 win to improve to 2-2, while the Herons slip to 1-2.

Ithaca used a 22-4 run in the first half to break open a two-point game. The Bombers extended their lead to a 22-point advantage at the 5:23 mark on a layup by junior forward Kelly Gawronski (West Seneca/West Seneca, N.Y.). She finished with a team-high 16 points and seven rebounds.

William Smith managed to whittle its deficit down to 15 by halftime, 40-25.

Midway through the second frame, the Herons used a 6-0 run to close to within six, 55-49, but Ithaca responded to the challenge with a run of its own. The Bombers outscored William Smith 8-1 over the next two and a half minutes to push their lead back into double digits. Ithaca’s lead did not slide below 10 points for the remainder of the contest.

Heron senior forward Laura Hadwin (Vestal/Vestal, N.Y.) led all scorers with 18 points and eight rebounds, while first-year forward Morgan Kassel (Honeoye Falls-Lima/Honeoye Falls, N.Y.) added 12 points and eight boards. Junior guard Arin Belden (Warsaw/Warsaw, N.Y.) recorded eight points, eight assists, and seven rebounds in her Heron debut.

Sophomore guard Stephanie Cleary (Tappan Zee/Tappan, N.Y.) and senior guard Kerri Brown (Bayport-Blue Point/Bayport, N.Y.) also reached double digits in points for the Bombers with 14 and 13, respectively.

William Smith returns to action on Jan. 3, against the Savannah College of Art and Design. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m., at the University of Dallas.

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