Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College women's basketball team moved back to .500 on the season after defeating SUNY Potsdam, 62-47, in their final game before the holiday break. Danielle Cleary '18 poured in a game- and career-high 22 points and was one of four Soaring Eagles in double-digits on the afternoon.
 
Joining Cleary in double-figures were Alex Balara '15, Karli Pochkar '16, and Kelsey Geisler '15. Balara turned in another well-rounded performance in her second game back this season, filling up the stat sheet on both ends of the floor. She scored 14 points, grabbed nine rebounds, handed out four assists, tallied five steals for the second consecutive game, and recorded two blocks. Pochkar recorded her second straight double-double, finishing with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Geisler rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points and also added six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block.
 
Balara made an immediate impact in today's action as she either scored or assisted on EC's first four baskets, helping the Soaring Eagles jump out to an early 9-3 lead. After Potsdam halted the run with a layup from Carli Reynolds, a trio of made free throws, two from Geisler and one from Cleary, as well as a layup from Balara made it a 14-5 game with 12:15 to play in the first half.
 
The Bears quickly answered to cut Elmira's lead to just two, 14-12 with 7:56 on the clock, with a 7-0 run of their own. But the Purple and Gold would not let Potsdam get any closer in the first half as a 10-0 run, sparked by a three-point play from Karli Pochkar'16, stretched EC's lead to double-digits for the first time all game at 24-12. The teams traded baskets over the final few minutes of the first half as EC took a 26-16 lead into the locker rooms.
 
The Soaring Eagles picked up where they left off at the end of the first half, expanding their lead to 35-22 after a Cleary three-pointer with 15:02 on the clock. EC's advantage remained in double-digits for another four minutes until Potsdam's Colleen McNamara knocked down a jumper to make it a single-digit game for the first time since the start of the second half.
 
It was a nine-point game, 45-36, with 9:49 remaining in the second half, but Potsdam would not get any closer as the Purple and Gold caught fire from the field over the next four-plus minutes. EC would go on a 12-0 run, which included three-pointers from Geisler and Cleary, to break open a 21-point lead with only 5:42 left in the game. The Bears were able to cut into their deficit a bit over the final minutes, but EC made their free throws when it mattered and rolled to the 62-47 victory.
 
Elmira will take a couple weeks off before returning to campus to take on Rutgers-Camden on Tuesday, December 30th at 6:00 p.m.