Bard Basketball Cannot Win Rematch at RPI

By Noah Poll

The Bard College women’s basketball team played its first game of 2026 after a three-week hiatus, falling 44-70 to the RPI Engineers at ECAV Arena.

Aislynn Dixon led the Raptors in scoring with 13 points on efficient 3-of-5 shooting (3-of-4 from three). She went 4-of-6 from the line – tying a career-high in makes – and added three rebounds. Jessica Martin also hit double figures, with 10 points, hitting 2-of-4 from long range. She went 2-of-2 from the line and grabbed three rebounds.

Erin Tobes went 6-of-6 from the stripe, tallying eight points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Shirley Dong had three points, five rebounds, two assists, and a steal. Morgan Kottka contributed three points, two rebounds, and an assist.

Bard prevented RPI from scoring in the first two minutes, but the Engineers were still the first to strike at the 7:55 mark. The Raptors crashed the offensive glass, resulting in three second-chance points before the first media timeout. Dong hit the first three of the game with 1:41 left in the first quarter, making it 6-12. RPI took a six-point lead into the second quarter after forcing seven turnovers, largely due to full-court pressure.

The Engineers had a brief 10-point lead, but Dixon drained back-to-back triples from the left wing to cut it to four at 14-18. RPI went on a 17-8 run to make it 35-22 at the half, with Bard’s scores coming from Kottka and Dixon. All of the Raptors’ field goals were threes, as they went a scorching 4-of-5 from deep in the quarter.

RPI went on a 15-5 run to start the second half, as Bard went just 2-of-12 from the field in the third quarter. Both teams were able to draw six fouls in the frame, and the Raptors went 3-of-6 from the line compared to the Engineers’ 4-of-6.

After two scores by the Engineers made it 56-29, Bard was able to finish strong, scoring 15 points in the final nine minutes. Martin had eight in the fourth quarter, while Tobes contributed six. Bard won the free throw battle in the final stanza, going 7-of-8 to RPI’s 2-of-3.