SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – Union College's four seniors combined for 48 points on Senior Day as the Dutchwomen clinched a postseason berth in emphatic fashion with a 61-40 victory over Rochester Institute of Technology in Liberty League women's basketball action at Viniar Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon.
 
Combined with Skidmore College's loss at Vassar College, the win moves Union (10-12, 8-8 Liberty League) into a tie for fourth place in the conference standings with two games to go. RIT (10-10, 7-8 Liberty League) falls into sixth place, a half-game back of the Dutchwomen and Thoroughbreds.
 
Senior Amber Raisner had a huge game in her final regular-season home game, pouring in a season-best 23 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field and a 9-of-13 effort from the line to go with four boards, four assists and two steals. Junior Megan Lee and senior Darby Leid added 12 points apiece, senior Laura Vinton chipped in nine points, and fellow senior Anna Metcalf hauled in a game- and career-high 12 boards.
 
The teams traded mini-runs in the first quarter, as a 7-0 stint for the home team was followed up by an 8-2 run for the visitors. Junior Kaleesha Joseph had all eight points for the Tigers during the run and finished with 10 of RIT's 14 points in the first quarter, almost single-handedly keeping her team in the contest. Raisner led Union with seven points in the opening 10 minutes, including a jumper in the waning seconds that gave her team a 15-14 edge after one quarter.
 
Union doubled up RIT in the second stanza, hitting 7-of-14 shots from the field and outscoring the visitors by a 16-8 margin. The Tigers got within a point on three separate occasions in the first five minutes, but Union had an answer on every subsequent possession as the teams traded baskets. Leading 21-20 with 4:46 left, the Dutchwomen closed the half on a 10-2 run, led by five points from Lee, to take a 31-22 lead into the half.
 
Lee hit 5-of-6 shots from the field to finish with 12 points and Raisner added 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting at the break. Union shot 44.4 percent (12 of 27) from the field in the opening half, while RIT finished at 40.9 percent (9 of 22).
 
Neither team had much luck finding the basket in the third quarter, but Leid sunk a pair of key three-pointers to allow Union to maintain its nine-point edge headed into the fourth. The Dutchwomen then closed out the contest with one of their highest-scoring quarters of the season, putting up 22 points to put the game away. Raisner (11), Vinton (7) and Leid (4) accounted for all 22 points for the home team as they cruised home with the win.
 
Union closed with 7-of-12 shooting in the fourth quarter to finish the game at 39.6 percent (21 of 53) while holding RIT to 30.8 percent (16 of 52) shooting.
 
Union will close out the regular season with a pair of road contests in the North Country, beginning with a 5:30 p.m. tipoff at Clarkson University on Friday night.