Box Score

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY (January 31, 2009) – For the second game in a row, a large first half deficit proved insurmountable for the Vassar College women's basketball team, as Skidmore College picked up a 62-49 win on Saturday afternoon at the Sports and Recreation Center.

The Brewers fall to 3-14, 0-7 in the Liberty League. Vassar heads to Drew University for a non-conference game on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. The Thoroughbreds improve to 6-12, 3-4 in the league.

In similar fashion, on Friday against Union College and on Saturday against Skidmore, the Brewers outscored their opponents by one point in the second half, but were unable to recover from large first half deficits. Vassar trailed by 19 heading into the second half against Union, and on Saturday, faced a 14 point deficit at the beginning of the final frame.

Vassar held an early lead, as a layup from junior Emily Haeuser (South Portland, ME/South Portland) and a three-pointer from freshman Brittany Parks (Escondido, CA/Escondido) gave the Brewers a quick 5-4 edge. However, a Christine Kemp (Putnam Valley, NY/Putnam Valley) layup put the Thoroughbreds on top for the first time, and Skidmore never looked back, reeling off ten unanswered points to a take a 14-5 lead with 13:31 remaining in the half. An Amber Kinsey (Troy, NY/Lansingburgh) jumper put the Thoroughbreds up by 20 with 4:31 left in the first half, but the Brewers narrowed the gap to 14 heading into the locker room as sophomore Carolyn Crampton (Reading, MA/Reading) drained a three-pointer, and Vassar took advantage of Skidmore fouls to score seven points from the free throw line.

Skidmore managed to maintain a double-digit cushion for the majority of the second half, though Vassar made things interesting in the final minutes of the game. A layup from freshman Kristyn Tempora (Marlboro, NJ/St. John Vianney) cut the Thoroughbred lead to 57-47 with 3:03 to play, and a free throw from Haeuser brought the Brewers within nine. However, Vassar could get no closer, and Skidmore hit five free throws in the final 35 seconds to create its final margin of victory.

Haeuser continued to fill up the stat sheet, with a game high 19 points, nine rebounds, and four steals. Parks added 15 points for the third straight game, and also dished out four assists. Crampton shot 3-for-6 from the three-point line, to notch nine points as well as six rebounds. Sophomore Eleanor Albert (Clinton, NY/Clinton) pulled down a career high seven rebounds.

Senior Kellye Caufield led Skidmore with 17 points, four steals and a game high 11 rebounds from the guard position. Megan Gaugler (Amsterdam, NY/Amsterdam) added nine points.