BALTIMORE – UMBC women's basketball used a decisive 26-0 third quarter run to defeat Morgan State, 65-46,  in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon at Hill Field House. Sophomore guard Laura Castaldo (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) matched a career-high with 17 points and added five rebounds and three streals en route to the Retrievers picking up their fourth straight victory.

The Retrievers relinquished their lead for the first and only time in the game just moments into the third quarter, but UMBC used the decisive run in the third to take the lead for good. The Retrievers shot 66.7 percent from the floor, including a perfect 4-for-4 from three, in the third quarter and recorded 17 points off of turnovers.

Junior forward Pandora Wilson (Gaithersburg, Md./Academy of Holy Cross) fell one rebound shy of the double-double, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds, while classmate Taylor McCarley (Bowie, Md./Academy of Holy Cross) chipped in 14 points, nine assists and six rebounds and senior guard Capree Garner (Silver Spring, Md./Springbrook) added 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

The Retrievers win their fourth straight and their sixth in their last eight games to improve to 6-3 on the season. Morgan State falls to 2-9 on the year.

UMBC held Morgan State to 18.8 percent shooting from the field in the opening quarter, but turned the ball over seven times. The Retrievers knocked down four-of-eight from the field en route to taking a 13-8 lead at the end of the opening 10 minutes of play.

The Retrievers' turnover margin had been a point of strength throughout its win streak, but UMBC turned the ball over 12 times in the opening half, compared to seven turnovers for the Lady Bears. Castaldo scored the Retrievers' last six points of the second quarter on a pair of threes, but MSU outscored UMBC 10-6 in the final four minutes of the half, including a three at the buzzer from Benedicta Makakala, to pull the Lady Bears within one, 26-25, at the break.

Morgan State took its first lead of the day on a pair of free throws to start the second half and followed with a corner three from Braennan Farrar to give the Lady Bears a 30-26 advantage. UMBC exploded for a 26-0 run, with eight points coming from Castaldo, to open up a 52-30 lead with 2:31 to go in the quarter. The Retrievers forced MSU into 13 turnovers in the third quarter alone and the Lady Bears shot 17.6 percent from the field.

Morgan State finished the contest by shooting 19.4 percent from the field and turned the ball over 22 times. The Lady Bears were led by Farrar's 15 points. Jadye Duncan chipped in 11 rebounds, including six of the team's 21 offensive rebounds.

On the Horizon for the Retrievers

-UMBC continues road action with a trip to Princess Anne, Md., to take on UMES in a 6 p.m. matchup on Tuesday, Dec. 15.