PHILADELPHIA – UMBC women's basketball had four players finish in double-figure points as the Retrievers defeated Rider in day two of Hawk Classic, 67-58, on Tuesday afternoon at Michael J. Hagan '85 Arena. The victory marked the Retrievers' ninth non-conference victory of the season, marking a program record.

UMBC used an 11-3 run to start the fourth quarter to help get the distance it needed to pick up its second victory of the season against Rider. UMBC junior guard Taylor McCarley (Bowie, Md./Academy of Holy Cross) was named to the All-Tournament team after averaging 10.5 points and 4.0 assists per game in the Classic. McCarley finished Tuesday with 13 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals, while senior guard Capree Garner (Silver Spring, Md./Springbrook) paced the Retrievers with 14 points and eight rebounds.

UMBC improved to 9-4 on the season after winning its seventh game in its last eight tries, while Rider falls to 3-8 overall.

Rider's Robin Perkins scored the Broncs final nine points of the first quarter, as part of a 12-point quarter for the junior guard, but UMBC senior guard Liz McNaughton (Fairfax, Va./Fairfax) drained a three with three seconds to go to help the Retrievers pull within one, 17-16, with 10 minutes gone in the contest. Perkins finished with a game-high 20 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the field and 8-of-11 from the free throw line.  

UMBC grabbed the lead on the opening bucket of the second quarter from red-shirt sophomore guard Stixz Wilson (Baltimore, Md./Seton Keough) and did not relinquish it, taking a 29-26 lead into the break. The Retrievers turned Rider over nine times in the opening half, leading to 11 UMBC points. UMBC chipped in six second chance points off of nine offensive rebounds.

Both teams started out the second half sluggish as Rider hit two of its first eight shots and turned the ball over three times in the first 5:40 of the third quarter, but the Retrievers were unable to add much to their lead chipping in three turnovers of their own en route to increasing their lead to 37-31.

Rider pulled within five at the end of the third quarter, 42-37, but the Retrievers scored seven of the first nine points in the fourth quarter to extend their advantage to 10 points, 49-39, 2:42 into the period. UMBC capped off its 11-3 run with a pair of free throws from Stixz Wilson, giving UMBC a 53-40 advantage with 5:11 remaining in the game.

Rider took advantage of the Retrievers' foul troubles, responding with an 8-2 run of its own, behind six points from the free throw line to pull within seven, 55-48. Despite UMBC leading 59-49 with one minute to go, the Broncs were not ready to give up as a pair of three-pointers within a 15 second time span from sophomore guard Kamila Hoskova brought Rider within six, 61-55, with 48 seconds to go. UMBC knocked down 10 of 12 free throw attempts in the final 1:02 of play to hang on for the victory. Hoskova finished the contest with 14 points.

UMBC junior forward Pandora Wilson (Gaithersburg, Md./Academy of Holy Cross) and sophomore guard Laura Castaldo (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) combined for 20 points, 12 rebounds and four assists on the day.

On the Horizon for the Retrievers

-UMBC opens America East action with three of its first four conference games at home. The Retrievers begin league play with a 1 p.m. matchup at the RAC Arena against Vermont on Saturday, Jan. 2.

Game Notes

-Taylor McCarleSy moved into fourth all-time at UMBC in career free throw attempts (447).