ORONO, Maine—UMBC senior guard Carlee Cassidy (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill) continued her domination of America East rival Maine (4-11, 0-3 AE) with her first career double-double of 19 points and a career-high 11 rebounds as the Retrievers (7-8, 1-1 AE) picked up their first conference victory of the season, 61-52.
Cassidy, who entered the game averaging 18.5 ppg in six career contests against the Black Bears, made eight of 14 attempts from the floor, including two 3-pointers, and added three assists and a steal.
Sophomore guard Michelle Kurowski (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) tallied 17 points on 7-of-15 shooting and drained a pair of 3's, while sophomore forward Erin Brown (Bethesda, Md./Walt Whitman) scored in double figures for the first time since Dec. 12 with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including three triples, and added seven rebounds.
Maine led, 19-16, with 6:46 to play in the first half, but a Kurowski 3-pointer sparked a 15-5 UMBC run to end the first period with a 31-24 advantage.
Brown led all scorers with 12 points in the first half. She combined with Kurowski (10) and Cassidy (7) to score 29 of UMBC's 31 first-period points.
The Retrievers made eight of their first 11 attempts in the second half, opening a 53-41 lead with 9:34 remaining. Cassidy and Kurowski combined to score 17 of UMBC's first 19 points of the half.
The teams alternated scores over the final five minutes and the Retrievers came away with the 61-52 victory.
Maine guard Kristin Baker was the only Black Bear in double figures with 17 points on four 3-pointers.
The Retrievers shot 42.6 percent in the game while holding Maine to 32.7 percent from the floor. The Black Bears held a 37-32 rebounding advantage.
The Retrievers return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 13, when they take on America East rival Albany at the Great Danes' SEFCU Arena.
