BALTIMORE - After a weekday road contest on Wednesday, UMBC women's basketball returns home to host the Towson Tigers on Sunday at 5 p.m. inside Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena.

A long-standing rivalry dating back to 1969, Sunday will be the 56th all-time meeting between the programs. Towson holds the all-time series edge 40-15, but the Retrievers won the most recent matchup in December to snap a nine-game skid to the Tigers. Last year's meeting took place in TU Arena with the Dawgs hanging onto a 65-60 victory after taking an 11-point lead to halftime. Jaliena Sanchez led the way with 20 points, five steals, and three assists. Returners Carmen Yanez, Alaina Williams, and Tiara Bellamy all saw the floor in the game, with Bellamy pulling down a career-high eight rebounds. Williams added four points and four rebounds, and Yanez handed out two assists.

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

• Heidi Williams became UMBC's first America East Weekly Award winner for the 2025-26 season after an impressive week for the Dawgs. Williams averaged 10.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game. Williams is the first Retriever to be named Rookie of the Week since Lyric Swann in January, 2020. In Thursday's historic victory over Virginia,  Williams scored 14 points and grabbed five rebounds in 20 minutes. She also hit four free throws in the final six seconds of the game to ice away the victory for UMBC. Williams made seven of eight free throws in the game. She added six points, six rebounds, and three blocks on Sunday afternoon in a 56-54 loss to Brown. 
• For the season, Williams is averaging 12.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game in 22.5 minutes off the bench. 

LAST TIME OUT

• UMBC enters Sunday afternoon's local battle with Towson with a 2-3 record after a road loss to UMES on Wednesday afternoon. The Retrievers trimmed a 14-point third-quarter deficit to just two points with 9:22 to play after a Gabby Scott three-pointer, but UMES ripped off a 17-3 run to defeat UMBC 68-54 at home.  
• Jade Tillman and Carmen Yanez each scored 11 points for the Retrievers against the Hawks on Wednesday afternoon. Tillman leads the team at 12.0 points per contest through the first five, while freshman Heidi Williams is second on the team at 10.4 points per game in 23.4 minutes off the bench. Kennedy Austin sits just under 10 points per game (9.6) and has consistently given Candice Hill strong minutes off the bench. Her 15 points on Sunday against Brown were a career-high.  
• Gabby Scott knocked down three threes, totaling nine points and three steals for the Retrievers, with Delaney Yarborough (seven points, six rebounds), and Austin (seven points, seven rebounds) chipping in offensively. 
• Ashanti Lynch led UMES with 15 points, six rebounds, and three steals as the Hawks evened up the all-time series with UMBC at 9-9. 

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

• The 3-2 Tigers are outscoring their opponents by 6.8 points per contest through five games. Towson defeated Frosburg State (100-37), Stetson (76-54), and Coppin State (65-54) with losses to Virginia Tech (56-100) and #9 Maryland (70-88).
• Zoli Khalil averages 13.6 points per game, leading a group of four Tigers averaging at least 10.4 points per game. Johnston (12.0), Thalia Shepard (12.0), and Tilda Sjokvist (10.4) have started all five games and join Khalil in double figures. Hannah Dereje is the fifth starter, averaging 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. 
• Morris has dominated the boards off the bench as well as rejecting shots at an impressive pace. She averages 6.8 boards in just 19.2 minutes off the bench. 
• Most recently, Towson defeated Coppin State, 65-54, on Sunday, Nov. 16. The Tigers drilled 52.2 percent of their 23 three-point attempts with six different players knocking down a shot from deep. Tilda Sjokvist led the way with 15 points and five assists. Viki Matulevicius added 14 points and knocked down four threes. 
• Towson was picked to finish seventh in the 12-team CAA Preseason Poll. Charleston was picked first in the preseason poll with Drexel and NC A&T sitting second and third. Towson Guard India Johnston was a preseason All-CAA Second Team selection. 
• Towson has successfully deterred opponents in the paint this season, ranking 15th in the country and first in the CAA with 6.4 blocks per game. Much of the work has been done by Kayla Morris, who has 18 blocks this season and three or more blocks in four of five games. Morris ranks third nationally in blocks, just two behind Cal Baptist's Emma Johansson and Kentucky's Clara Strack.
• Led by 11 threes from Tilda Sjokvist, Towson ranks 41st in Division I with 8.6 three-point makes per contest. Eight different Tigers have made a three this season. Sjokvist is one of 40 Division I players shooting 52.4 percent or better from deep this season.
• Laura Harper is in year four at Towson and year six as a head coach after leading Coppin State for a pair of seasons prior to her hiring at Towson. Harper is 52-44 at Towson and 69-70 for her career. She helped Maryland to the 2006 national championship as a player. 

SCOUTING THE DAWGS

• The UMBC bench has provided a great boost to start the season, ranking 56th nationally in bench points at 30.2 per game. The Retrievers have scored more than 40 points off the bench twice; 42 vs. Stevenson, and 41 at Brown. UMBC has scored at least 16 bench points in every game this season. 
• The Dawgs continue to defend the three-point line well, something they did incredibly well under Candice Hill in 2024-25. So far through four games, UMBC is holding opponents to just 25.0 percent from deep, topping the America East amd ranking 66th nationally.
• UMBC has been nearly automatic at the charity stripe to start the season, knocking down shots at a 77.7 percent clip. The Dawgs have two games this season in which they've been perfect from the line, including Sunday's 15-15 performance vs. Brown. They rank 41st in the country and first in the America East.
• Individually, Carmen Yanez sits in the top 50 in Division I with 24 assists through five games.
• The most experienced Retriever, Carmen Yanez sits 17 assists away from 200 for her career. She is off to a strong start in 2025-26, handing out more than five assists per game. Along with needing 17 assists to reach 200. She needs 30 more assists to etch her name into the UMBC record book as an addition to the list of all-time assist leaders. 
• Candice Hill is in year two with UMBC and holds an overall record of 16-18 after a 14-15 record in her inaugural season at the helm.
• Hill's first season saw UMBC improve on its 2023-24 record by four wins overall and one conference win. 14 wins tied for the most in the program since 2016-17 when the team won 15 games. UMBC's five non-conference victories was the most for the program since 2015.

HISTORY MADE

• Last Thursday's victory on the road at Virginia was a historic one for the Retrievers. UMBC never trailed, allowing Virginia to tie the contest once in the fourth before fighting off the Cavalier rally for a 61-56 victory. 
• The win on Thursday was the first Power 4 (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12) victory in UMBC program history, snapping a streak of 38 straight losses against such programs. UMBC was previously 0-4 all-time against Virginia and 0-15 against the ACC. 
• The 64 percent UMBC shot from three in the win proved to be its best showing from distance since shooting 66.7 percent from deep at George Mason in December 2024. 
• Candice Hill's program shocked the Cavaliers from the jump, building an 11-2 lead in the first four minutes of the contest. The lead grew to 14 midway through the second quarter as Yánez drilled a three to make it 33-19 Retrievers. UMBC took an eight-point lead into the break and led by 12 at the 7:40 mark of the third as Williams connected from deep, but UVA was able to trim the deficit to one with 37 ticks left on the third quarter clock. Kennedy Austin found Scott open for three with 11 seconds remaining in the third to put the Retrievers up by four entering the final quarter of play. Virginia tied the game at 54 with 3:13 to play, but the Cavaliers never took the lead as the Retrievers held on to win on the road. Tiara Bellamy went baseline, converting a reverse layup with 28 seconds left to put UMBC up by three. Virginia once again pulled within one, but Williams made four free throws in the final six seconds to ice the game.

GETTING TO KNOW THE DAWGS

• Hill's program features five returners and eight newcomers in 2025-26. Carmen Yánez is the lone returning starter for UMBC, while fellow captain Tiara Bellamy is expected to fill a larger role. Also back are junior Alaina Williams, and sophomores Lauren Thompson and Kenya Ramsey. 
• UMBC's eight newcomers are split between four transfers and four freshmen. 
  • Incoming Transfers -> Dagny Slomack (Soph. | Central Connecticut State), Delaney Yarborough (Sr. | North Carolina A&T), Gabby Scott (Jr. | Towson), Jade Tillman (Jr. | East Carolina)
  • Freshmen -> Heidi Williams (Saint Frances Academy), Kennedy Austin (Maret), Sadaya Jones (Morgantown), Maisie Crowley (Bishop McNamara)
• The 2025-26 Retrievers represent three countries and six states.
  • Maryland (5) -> Austin, Scott, Tillman, H. Williams, Yarborough
  • New Jersey (2) -> Bellamy, Slomack
  • Connecticut (1) -> Thompson
  • Florida (1) -> A. Williams
  • Virginia (1) -> Ramsey
  • West Virginia (1) -> Jones
  • Spain (1) -> Yánez
  • England (1) -> Crowley
• Yánez, Bellamy, and Yarborough will captain the program in 2025-26. Yánez started 28 games last season and handed out five or more assists in seven different games. Bellamy averaged just under four points per game off the bench in year one as a Retriever after transferring from Saint Peter's. Yarborough, the veteran transfer from NC A&T, posted five games with at least five rebounds and put forth her best performance of the season (9 pts, 6 reb) against her former school, Stony Brook. 

2024-25 IN REWIND

• The 2024-25 Retrievers posted a record of 14-15 in year one under Candice Hill, matching the 2022-23 record for the most wins since 2016-17 for UMBC women's hoops. 
• UMBC reached the America East Conference Tournament as the #7 seed before falling to #2 Vermont, 70-39. The Retrievers held a two-point lead after the opening 10 minutes before the Catamounts pulled away.
• The name of the game for the Retrievers in 2024-25 was defense as UMBC ranked in the top-65 in the country in scoring defense, allowing just 59.1 points per game. The Retrievers defended the three-point line extremely well, finishing the season 37th in Division I and second in the America East as teams shot just 28.1 percent from deep. 
• UMBC was also stellar at the charity stripe last season, knocking down its free throws at a 74.7 percent clip, ranking in the top-80 in Division I and recording the third-best mark in program history. 
• Under Hill's guidance, the Retrievers improved offensively from behind the three-point line (29.5% -> 30.4 %) and the free-throw line (67.8% -> 74.7%). The Retrievers also handed out 10.4 assists per game compared to 9.9 the season prior and turned the ball over 1.3 fewer times per game in 2024-25.

AMERICA EAST PRESEASON POLL
1. Vermont 63 (7)
2. Maine 55 (2)
3. Bryant 46
4. UAlbany 42
5. NJIT 37
6. Binghamton 26
7. New Hampshire 24
8. UMBC 23
9. UMass Lowell 8

WHAT'S NEXT

• UMBC will travel to Miami, Florida, taking on Florida International and either Seattle or Presbyterian in the FIU Tournament. The Retrievers take on host Florida International at 11 a.m. on Friday, November 28 and either Seattle or Presbyterian on Sunday, November 30 at 11 a.m. The next home contest for the Dawgs will be December 9, as they host another local rival in Loyola (Md.). That game will be part of a men's/women's doubleheader with the UMBC men hosting Buffalo at 5 p.m. before the women's tip. The event will be a Black Out with the first 1,000 fans receiving free t-shirts. One ticket will gain patrons entry to both contests.