Season heats up for winter athletes

Men’s and women’s basketball highlighted another winning week for Skidmore winter sports, each notching a pair of Liberty League wins to remain perfect in conference play. Ice hockey gave No. 7 Plattsburgh all it could handle before skating to a 1-1 tie with Potsdam.

Connor Merrill ’15 became men’s basketball’s 15th 1,000-point scorer with a game-high 15 points in the Friday’s 63-37 defeat of Bard. Merrill also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds and added four blocks in the win. Erik Sanders ’16 chipped in 10 points and five rebounds and Royce Paris had 10 points off the bench. The team held the Raptors to a season-low eight field goals and a 16.3 percent shooting percentage. The Thoroughbreds outscored RPI 36-17 in the second half en route to a 59-40 win, improving to 4-0 in league play. Sanders led all players with 18 points, Merrill produced 13 points and seven rebounds and Aldin Mendunjanin ’16 had 13 points, five assists and four boards. The team goes on the road to take on Clarkson at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 13.

Women’s basketball was dominant over the weekend, outscoring its opponents 140-77 in a pair of conference victories. Migle Vilunaite ’17 scored a game-high 14 points on 5 of 7 shooting in the team’s win over Bard on Friday. Ella Scheuerell ’16 tallied eight of her season-high 11 points in the first half and Angela Botiba ’15 had 10 points and five rebounds. The Thoroughbreds closed out the first half on a 20-1 run and never looked back, cruising to a 76-46 win. Skidmore finished 27 for 56 from the field and 8 for 17 from three-point range, also going a perfect 14 for 14 from the free throw line. The team carried the momentum into Saturday’s game at RPI, scoring 29 of the game’s first 32 points in a 64-41 victory to move to 4-0 in conference play. The Engineers were held scoreless for the first 10:06 of the game and their top scorer did not register a point all game. Vilunaite scored a team-high 12 points to go along with 12 rebounds, Botiba contributed 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds and Kelly Donnelly ’18 had 10 points and nine boards.

Ice hockey took No. 7 Plattsbugh to the wire Friday night, but the Cardinals managed to pull away with a power-play goal early in the third period. Anthony Bird ’17 put the Thoroughbreds in front 1-0. Plattsburgh responded with two unanswered goals, but Jack Sloan ’18 tied the game at 2-2 with his first collegiate tally.  Skidmore continued to press, but the Cardinals managed to produce what proved to be the game-winning save with just under seven minutes to play in the second period. Skidmore came back strong on Saturday, battling to a 1-1 tie with Potsdam. Mickey Foley ’18 potted his fifth goal of the season 4:45 into the third period to give the Thoroughbreds a 1-0 lead, but the Bears answered back 1:58 later with a power-play goal of their own. The teams registered two shots apiece in  overtime, but neither could generate a quality scoring opportunity. Jack McDonald ’17 stopped 36 shots, including 14 in the second and 12 in the third to help preserve the tie. The team hosts the University of Southern Maine at 7 p.m., Friday, Jan. 16. ~ By Dan St.-Jacques