BALTIMORE—The UMBC women's basketball team (6-8, 0-1 AE) fought back from a 16-point first-half deficit, but the comeback fell short in the end as Hartford (11-3, 2-0 AE) held on for a 69-66 win Wednesday evening at the RAC Arena in the America East Conference opener for the Retrievers.
The Hawks scored the first seven points of the game, as the Retrievers missed their first seven shots and committed five turnovers in the first seven minutes of the game. After Hartford opened a game-high 16-point lead, 23-7, at the 7:37 mark, UMBC made eight of its last 10 shots of the first half while the Hawks hit just two of their final 10.
Down 30-15 with 2:16 remaining, the Retrievers rattled off 10 straight points, including a pair of 3-pointers by senior guard Carlee Cassidy (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill), and the Hawks' lead was 32-25 at halftime.
A 3-pointer by junior forward Meghan Colabella (Upper Montclair, N.J./Montclair) gave the Retrievers their first lead of the game, 35-34, at the 15:52 mark, but Hartford guard Daphne Elliott answered with a triple of her own 33 seconds later to put the visitors back on top.
After sophomore guard Michelle Kurowski (Hicksville, N.Y./Hicksville) tied the score at 37-37 with a layup 10 seconds later, the Hawks opened a five-point advantage, 45-40, with 12:32 to play. But UMBC regained the lead, 49-47, at the 10:24 mark with a 9-2 run, sparked by a pair of three-point plays by sophomore center Topé Obajolu (Randallstown, Md./Archbishop Carroll).
Neither team led by more than three until a 12-4 Hartford run put the visitors back on top by five, 65-60, with 1:36 remaining. The Retrievers went without a field goal for seven minutes but made nine of 10 free throws during that span.
The Hawks, meanwhile, struggled from the line down the stretch, making just five of 10 foul shots in the final 58 seconds, giving the Retrievers hope, and Cassidy twice made layups in the final 16 seconds following Hartford trips to the charity stripe.
A free throw by Hawk guard Jenna Peterson made it a three-point game with eight seconds remaining. Cassidy, UMBC's career 3-point leader, had the ball but could not find an open shot, and her last-second attempt hit off the back of the rim and bounced away, as Hartford escaped with the 69-66 victory.
Cassidy led all scorers with 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting, including three 3-pointers, and she added a team-high six rebounds and two steals to earn UMBC's America East Player of the Game. She now has 212 triples in her career, the fifth-most in ever by an America East player after passing Maine's Ashley Underwood. Cassidy also scored her 1,400th career point in the game, becoming the 35th player in league history to reach that mark.
Obajolu was the only other Retriever in double figures, as she was a perfect 6-for-6 from the foul line and finished with 12 points. Colabella and sophomore guard Katie Brooks (Maryville, Tenn./Heritage) tallied nine points apiece, and junior guard Michele Brokans (Lansdale, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) dished out five assists.
Hartford center Diana Delva led four Hawks in double figures with 17 points and seven rebounds to earn her team's America East Player of the Game honors. Forward Erica Beverly posted 10 points and four blocks.
The Retrievers shot 48 percent (24-for-50) in the game while holding the Hawks to 38.9 percent. Hartford held a slight rebounding edge, 32-30.
The Retrievers return to action on Sunday, Jan. 10, when they take on America East rival Maine at the Black Bears' Alfond Arena.
