Gators Use Strong Defense to Complete 3-0 Week
ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Women’s Basketball completed a 3-0 week by defeating visiting Alfred 64-49 in Saturday afternoon Empire 8 Conference action.
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
12 | 7 | 5 | 25 | 49 |
|
|
12 | 17 | 14 | 21 | 64 |
Team Stats
Alfred
| Game Statistics | Alfred | Russell Sage College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (18-75) | (23-56) |
| Field Goal % | 24.0% | 41.1% |
| Rebounds | 42 | 55 |
| Assists | 9 | 18 |
| Turnovers | 6 | 20 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 11 | 6 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 7 | 9 |
| Pts in the Paint | 24 | 30 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 9 | 9 |
| Bench Pts | 11 | 38 |
ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Women's Basketball completed a 3-0 week by defeating visiting Alfred 64-49 in Saturday afternoon Empire 8 Conference action.
Facing the team that began the matinee atop the Conference in team defense, the Gators (10-5/5-1 E8) showcased some strong defense of their own. RSC forced the Saxons into a 23.7 percent shooting performance on the day. This included starting 0-of-24 en route to a 3-of-28 (10.7 percent) showing from beyond the arc.
RSC had three players score in double figures in the home win.
Sophomore guard Jaileen Soto (Phillipsburg, NJ/Phillipsburg) led the way with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting.
Junior forward Kallie Hopkins (Millsboro, DE/Poly Tech) and junior forward Danielle Waldron (Cayuga, NY/Union Springs) added 11 points each. Hopkins, who began the contest ranked fifth in the Conference in rebounds, went 4-of-6 from the field and secured six caroms, while Waldron shot 50.0 percent, grabbed four rebounds,
"I thought we did a great job sharing the ball and playing unselfish basketball," said RSC Head Coach Michael Branche. "Our team defense was at a very high level, and that set the tone for the game."
After a 12-12 first period, RSC used a 17-7 second quarter to go up 29-19 at the break. The Gators limited Alfred (9-6/3-3 E8) to a 6-of-35 shooting performance, including 0-of-15 from three-point land, across the opening 20 minutes.
Alfred junior Jaidyn Chest, the Conference's top threat from beyond the arc, topped all players with 14 points on 4-of-19 shooting. RSC held the guard, who began the day ranked fourth in the Conference in scoring, to just three points after intermission.
The Gators continue a run of five-consecutive home contests on Friday vs. Nazareth.
Gator Bites with Papa John's: The 2025-2026 season will mark the second with Branche at the helm…The Gators, coming off a trip to the Quarterfinals of the 2024-2025 Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament, combine eight returners with four newcomers on this year's roster…Senior guard Layla Acosta (Haines City, FL/Haines City) and Hopkins highlight the returnees…Acosta, a two-time All-Conference pick, became just the tenth RSC player to surpass 1,000 career points in the home win vs. SUNY Cobleskill on December 1…She entered the matinee fifth in program records with 1,134 career points...Mary Leary '83 is fourth with 1,199 career points…Hopkins finished last season ranked fifth in the E8 with a 7.6 rebounding average…Acosta was tabbed the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, November 9…She topped all players with 24 points on 47.3 percent shooting in the season-opening home victory vs. Bard on November 8…Freshman guard Miranda Price (Stillwater, NY/Stillwater) was chosen the E8 Rookie of the Week for the period ending Sunday, November 16…She tallied a game-high 19 points in the home win vs. SUNY Morrisville on November 15…Price went 7-of-9 from the field, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, in her collegiate debut…Acosta was tabbed an E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, December 7…The guard tallied 26 points on 43.5 percent shooting in the home win vs. SUNY Cobleskill on December 1…The senior commenced the week ranked leading the Conference in scoring at 19.2 points per-game.
