Baltimore, Md. – UMBC begins the America East Conference portion of its schedule on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at New Hampshire. UMBC and New Hampshire rank at the top of the league standings heading into the contest with UMBC at 8-3 on the year and New Hampshire at 8-2.

RETRIEVER UPDATE: UMBC enters conference play with the most non-conference wins since entering the America East Conference three seasons ago. UMBC moved to 8-3 on the year after defeating Navy 71-44 in the Retrievers last outing. UMBC was led by Matea Pender, who scored 20 points for her second 20-plus point outing of the season. Pender has double-figures in five consecutive games and 10-of-11 on the year. Pender leads the team with 15.1 ppg. Brittnie Hughes ranks second with 12.5 ppg while handing out 5.2 apg. Amanda Robinson is the Retrievers third player to hold a double figure average on the year at 10.5 ppg. Robinson last season went off on New Hampshire in one of the Retrievers final games of the year, as Robinson scored 20 points with five rebounds.

WILDCAT UPDATE: The New Hampshire Wildcats hold an 8-2 record on the season and are coming off of back-to-back overtime wins to claim the Lehigh Christmas Classic. In the two-day tournament, New Hampshire junior forward Danielle Clark averaged 20 ppg and was named Co-America East Player of the Week. Clark leads the Wildcats with 15.0 ppg while teammate Ray Williams has come off the bench in all 10 games to average 10.2 ppg.

Who's Up Next: UMBC returns home for the first time since Dec. 10 when the Retrievers host Boston U. at 7 p.m. in RAC Arena.  

RETRIEVER GAMEDAY

Game Notes: UMBC against New Hampshire is the Retrievers 12th game of the season, first in the America East Conference and seventh on the road. The game marks the fifth meeting between the two programs with New Hampshire holding a 3-1 all-time advantage. UMBC last season was swept by New Hampshire as the Wildcats won both contests by an average of 8.5 ppg. UMBC's only win against New Hampshire came at Lundholm Gymnasium, as the Retrievers defeated UNH 48-47. The game features two of the top scorers in the conferences as UMBC's Matea Pender is averaging 15.1 ppg and Danielle Clark of New Hampshire is averaging 15.0 ppg.

RETRIEVER QUICK SHOTS

- Kristin Drabyn has been on fire for the Retrievers as of late, scoring in double figures in the last three games and shooting 82.4 percent from the field over that span. Drabyn is 14-for-17 in the last three games and 8-of-11 from outside the arc, shooting 72.7 percent from three-point range. Drabyn in the last three is averaging 12.3 ppg, second best to Matea Pender.

- Senior Matea Pender has shown her ability to score all season long, recording double figures in 10 of the Retrievers' 11 games this season. Pender has recorded 20-plus points twice this season with a season-high 22 points against Lafayette. Pender's lowest output of the year was nine points against Longwood. Pender for her career has 38 career double figure games.

- UMBC, who went through a stretch of four games with no more than five team three-point baskets, has been finding the bottom of the twine the last five games, recording at least seven team treys. UMBC hit a season high 10 three-point baskets against IPFW and is averaging 8.6 three-point baskets a game over the last five games. UMBC on the season is averaging 6.6 treys per game.

- UMBC in the last released NCAA statistics as of games through Jan. 2, 2006, ranked sixth in the nation with 19.5 apg and 30th in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 35.8 percent from the field. The NCAA Statistics are released every Tuesday afternoon.

- UMBC has been very efficient from the field to date this season with the Retrievers shooting 45.2 percent. UMBC has yet to shoot below 40.0 percent in a game this season, including shooting a season-high 54.5 percent against IPFW, making 30-of-55 attempts from the field. UMBC shot a season low against Navy, finishing 26-for-65 at 40.0 percent from the field.

- UMBC in the final five minutes of its 11 games this season has turned over the ball a 15 times, averaging 1.4 turnovers per game in the final five minutes. During that same span of time, UMBC has handed out 22 assists and holds a 1.5 assist to turnover ratio.

News and Notes...

UMBC In Midst of Five Game Swing...UMBC is in the middle of a stretch of five games on the road and eight of nine away from home. UMBC played three games in six days to start the road swing, traveling to Drexel and Indiana native programs IPFW and Butler. UMBC after Christmas took on Navy and ends with New Hampshire before returning home on Jan. 7 against Boston U.

Lending a helping hand...UMBC leads the America East Conference for the second consecutive season in assists per game and ranks sixth in the NCAA Statistics through games Jan. 2, 2006. The Retrievers to date have recorded 19.5 apg. UMBC has six games with 20-plus assists this season, including 26 against Fairleigh Dickinson as the Retrievers came one assist away from their single-season mark of 27, set in 1985 against Shippensburg. Brittnie Hughes dished out a career-high 10 assists against Lafayette and is averaging 5.2 apg through 11 games this season. The junior point guard led UMBC with 99 assists on the year last season and ranked among the conference leaders in the category.

Rohde's Start Streak...Junior Sharri Rohde extended her streak to 67 consecutive starts and has not missed a start in her entire collegiate career, starting all 28 games as a freshman and sophomore and every one this year.

Pender Reaches All-Time Top-20 Scoring Chart...Senior Matea Pender joined UMBC's all-time top-20 chart for points scored after recording 13 points against IPFW. Pender currently has 784 career points, 17th all-time. The last time UMBC had an active member on the top-20 scoring list was during the 2002-03 season. Pender is currently on pace to reach 1,000 career points and become the 15th Retriever to ever break the 1,000 point plateau.

Pender Becomes Fifth Retriever To Reach 100 Treys For Her Career...Senior Matea Pender recorded five treys against Drexel to become the fifth player in UMBC history to reach 100 career three-point baskets. Pender needs 18 treys to reach fourth on UMBC's all-time three-point baskets made chart.

Rohde Moving Up Assists and Blocks All-Time Charts...Junior Sharri Rohde, who is UMBC's active leader in assists, blocks and steals, is moving up the Retrievers all-time charts in the assist and blocks category. Rohde currently has 191 career assists, 11th all-time and 51 career blocks, ranking 11th all-time. With 158 career assists, junior Brittnie Hughes is closing in on an all-time top-10 ranking.

Indiana Trio Make Most Of Trip To Hoosier State...UMBC's Indiana girls put on a show in front of some family and friends against IPFW and Butler. The Indiana trio combined for 31 points against IPFW. Kristin Drabyn scored a career-high 14 points, all in the second half. Sharri Rohde tallied 10 points while Heather Luttrell dropped seven points in the game. The trio shot a combined 63.1 percent from the field, making 12-of-19 shots. Against Butler, Rohde tallied a career-high 11 rebounds while Drabyn finished with her second double-digit performance, scoring 10 points.

Hughes Earns America East Conference Co-Player of the Week (12-4-05)...Brittnie Hughes was named America East Conference Co-Player of the Week for the week ending Dec. 4, 2005. Hughes led UMBC to back-to-back wins as the junior point guard averaged 18.0 ppg and 6.5 apg in two contests. Hughes opened the week at American, scoring a career-high 19 points with nine assists and a 9-of-9 performance at the free throw line.

Hughes Named To Second All-Tournament Team...When it comes to tournaments, UMBC junior point guard Brittnie Hughes has stepped up to the challenge, earning a spot on both all-tournament teams this season. Hughes won a spot on the Retriever Tip-Off Tournament team after leading the Retrievers to the title. At South Florida, Hughes averaged 15.5 ppg and 4.25 apg to lead the Retrievers to a 1-1 mark. Last year Hughes was named to the 2004 Retriever Tip-Off Tournament team.

Block Party...Amanda Robinson's six blocks against Morgan State tied Eunice French for the most blocks recorded in a single game by a Retriever. Robinson had three blocks in the first five minutes against Morgan State. UMBC as a team blocked nine shots against Morgan State, Robinson's six, Nicole Dixon recording two and Mackenzie Butler one. UMBC on the season is averaging 3.1 bpg.

Pender Named MVP Of Retriever Tip-Off Tournament....Senior Matea Pender was named Retriever Tip-Off Tournament Most Valuable Player after averaging 14.5 ppg in the two games. Pender shot .500 from outside the arc, making 5-for-10 while shooting 47.6 percent from the field on 10-of-21. Pender added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in the two-day event.

Double-Double...UMBC Amanda Robinson recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against Fairleigh Dickinson. Dating back to last season, Robinson has double-digit scoring in six of her last seven games.

Hitting the Airwaves...UMBC will hit the airwaves with six games broadcasted live on WLG-1370 AM, all home games and some away games via www.umbcretrievers.com and a televised game against Vermont on Feb. 12 at RAC Arena. All WLG broadcast games will also run live via the website for fans outside the broadcasting network. UMBC will also broadcast live stats via the web for all home games at RAC Arena.

UMBC Captures Tip-Off Tournament Title...UMBC for the first time in the three-year history of the Retriever Tip-Off Tournament captured the title, defeating Morgan State, 72-50, in the opening round to advance the championship game against Fairleigh Dickinson. UMBC went on to beat FDU, 76-58, to win the title as Matea Pender earned tournament most valuable player honors and Brittnie Hughes made the all-tournament team.

Retrievers Picked Ninth In Preseason Conference Poll...The UMBC women's basketball team was picked to finish ninth in the America East Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. Hartford was the league's pick to win the conference after taking the league tournament title last year. Boston U. and Maine were selected to tie for second.

America East Tournament Returns To Hartford...For the third consecutive season the America East Conference Championships will return to Chase Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion on the campus of the University of Hartford. Hartford has hosted the conference tournament the past two seasons, including winning the league tournament last season.

International Students...UMBC has developed a reputation for having international students on its roster, including two in 2005-06. UMBC has graduated two international students the last two years and will graduate senior Matea Pender at the conclusion of the upcoming season.

UMBC Inks Two for 2006-07...UMBC head women's basketball coach Phil Stern announced the signings of two student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to attend UMBC for the 2006-07 academic year. Carlee Cassidy (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill) and Leanne Crockett (Manchester, Conn./Manchester) are both slated to become freshman at UMBC in the fall of 2006.