Bulldogs drop heartbreaker at UMass Lowell, 86-85, Weds.

LOWELL, MASS. – Despite holding a lead for the majority of the game, the Bryant University women's basketball team dropped a tough 86-85 decision at UMass Lowell, Wednesday evening at the Costello Athletic Center.

Senior point guard Jenniqua Bailey (Bloomfield, Conn.) made a big-time drive and finish along the baseline to put the Bulldogs up, 83-82, with just 43 seconds remaining on the clock, only to have Shannon Samuels answer right, just as she'd done all night.

With time ticking down, Jenniqua Bailey quickly advanced the ball up the floor, drawing a foul and earning herself a trip to the line where she knocked down a pair to inch Bryant ahead, 85-84, with 10 seconds left.

Samuels drew a foul in the backcourt with 9.9 seconds left, and knocked down two clutch free throws to put UML up, 86-85. The Black and Gold had one final attempt in the final seconds but the ball rattled in and out to preserve the one point River Hawk victory.

Ivory Bailey (Wyomissing, Pa.) led the Bulldogs with 23 points and eight rebounds, while Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) put up 15 points and a season-high 15 rebounds. Jenniqua Bailey finished with 13 points, five boards and five assists, and Morgan Olander (Mansfield, Conn.) put up 11 points and nine boards.

Tiersa Winder (Baltimore, Md.) rounded out the Bryant double-digit scorers with 10 points, while Leigha Tacey (Foxboro, Mass.) added four points and four rebounds in some quality minutes off the bench.

But Samuels was the player of the game, putting up 31 points and five assists, while Jasmine McRoy added 20 points in the River Hawks' first victory over Bryant since the 2004-05 season.

In similar fashion to Saturday's start at Cornell, the Bulldogs came storming out of the gates on Wednesday scoring at will to open a 24-12 edge less than nine minutes into the contest. The Black and Gold maintained their 12-point edge, 34-22, through the eight-minute mark behind the dominating play of Rucker on the offensive boards.

Bryant remained in the driver's seat through the final media timeout of the half, 40-30, but UMass Lowell continued to hang around led by the pure scoring ability of Samuels. The Bulldogs rode their 48 percent shooting half to their second 50-point half of the season, taking a 52-40 advantage into halftime.

The Black and Gold kept a steady double digit edge through the opening minutes of the second half but the River Hawks kept chipping away, taking advantage of poor help defense by the Bulldogs, to pull within seven, 66-59, with 11:40 left on the clock. After shifting hands a few times, UMass Lowell took their first sustained lead of the night, 78-73, at the 6:56 mark of the second half.

Ivory Bailey single handedly kept Bryant alive over the next few minutes, knocking down a huge jumper and skying for big-time put back to bring the visitors with one, 78-77, at the final media break of the game. The lead went back and forth twice before UMass Lowell took an 82-81 lead with 90 seconds remaining in the contest.

Strong play from Samuels down the stretch helped the River Hawks secure the come-from-behind, 86-85, win at home.

Looking ahead, the Black and Gold will break for 10-days for finals before returning to action on Sunday, Dec. 21 vs. URI, where they'll look to snap their first two-game losing streak of the season.