After its loss in the Liberty League Championship last season against Skidmore College, the Ithaca College women’s basketball team is coming back to try and redeem its title shortcomings. After only losing by two points in that Liberty League title game, the team plans on not letting that happen again.
The 2022–23 season was a successful one for the Bombers, finishing with a record of 24–5. Yet, with unfinished business on the horizon the team is ready to turn the page. Senior guard Hannah Polce talked about what losing the title meant to the team and said the team is using it as motivation to find a different result this time around.
“I think not winning the Liberty League title hit us pretty hard,” Polce said. “Overall, I would say last season was successful — it would be unfair to say it was not — but I definitely think we are not content with last year and want to push for better.”
To prepare for this season, the Bombers have taken a new approach to things. The South Hill squad has been focusing heavily on conditioning and the basics of basketball. The NCAA stated earlier this year that all Division III teams have been granted eight practices outside of its regular season. This gave the team the advantage to start working hard on the court before the season even started.
Junior forward Annabella Yorio said these added practices have added to the momentum of the team heading into the regular season.
“Our coaches got a few practices with us in preseason which had really helped us prepare for the season,” Yorio said. “We’re all really excited.”
The Bombers are keeping a positive attitude this year and want to be fun to watch. Yorio also emphasized that the team has been working on new offensive plays and movements that they have been performing well. Learning to play to each player’s strengths and weaknesses has been a big focus for the team.
Returning players have been working hard to adjust to new positions as well. Sophomore guard Zoraida Icabalceta was one of the biggest first-year contributors last year before she was struck by an illness, causing her to miss nine consecutive games. Icabalceta scored a total of 94 points over the 2022–2023 season, averaging 5.5 points per game over an average of 19 minutes per game.
Icabalceta was not alone in dealing with injuries last season. At one point last season on Jan. 28, the Bombers could only assemble a nine-player roster for its game against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), with seven players out due to injury.
Thankfully for the Bombers, they have no injured players to begin the season and fans will be able to see underclassmen step up into key playing roles. Head coach Dan Raymond recruited five first-year students to the team, and Polce said she looks forward to seeing all the talent they carry.
“I am excited to play with our underclassmen this year,” Polce said. “The experience is very different this year, so I am really excited to see what the younger girls have to offer and to play with them.”
Along with its new first-year students, the Bombers have recruited a Division I transfer from California Polytechnic State University, senior Junie Dickson. Dickson decided to play her fourth season of college basketball at Ithaca College after leading Cal Poly in free throw percentage last season. The team is pumped to have new faces, new talent and especially to meet a new player from a Division I school who Raymond believes will help them succeed.
“Junie [Dickson] and I discussed the expectations that we have for each other,” Raymond said. “It’s one of those things where I think from a coaching standpoint you get a D-1 transfer and you have all these expectations, but I want to make sure I am not putting those on Junie.”
Raymond is thrilled by the level of play he is seeing this year. Raymond said he asks the team to deliver a play in a certain way and they do it. Someone he can lean on is Polce. As a senior guard, she not only brings talent to the team, but she said her determination for the Liberty League title can get the team there.
“I am ready to bring back the Liberty title, beat the teams we lost to last year, I want to beat Vassar, but for the team, I am ready to step in as a leader,” Polce said. “Our energy is different this year, we really want to focus on positivity rather than focusing on the negatives. That is what people can look forward to and what we hope for.”
The Bombers have their first matchup against SUNY Cortland at 6 p.m. Nov. 9 in Cortland, New York.
