Bulldogs' fourth quarter effort erased by Black Bears' third 13+ run, Maine wins, 77-52, on Saturday in Smithfield

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University women's basketball team struggled to contain Maine on Saturday afternoon, as the Black Bears strung together three 13+ runs to fend off the Bulldogs, 77-52, in Smithfield.

The Bulldogs (4-6) gave up a season-high 28 points in the first quarter, before recording their fifth single digit scoring performance in the second quarter. Both periods contained two of Maine's three 13+ runs in the contest, as the visitors enjoyed a 14-0 run over a 3:38 span in first and a 13-0 streak in a 3:08 duration in the second to take a 20-point advantage at the break, 45-25.

The first quarter run included three from downtown from three different players, while the second contained three from behind the arc from another two shooters, as eight Black Bears combined to go 12-for-22 (54.6 percent) from deep in the game.

Right before the half, senior Chanel Ramcharran (Pickering, Ont.) hit her only three of the game, sparking Bryant's longest run of the contest. Classmate Alex Klein (Waterloo, Ont.) capped off the 7-0 streak by scoring back-to-back layups to start the second half. Klein finished 5-for-10 from the floor for 11 points.

The third quarter was the Bulldogs most productive period, marking the only quarter in which the home team outscored the visitors, 18-11. The Black Bears were unable to score back-to-back buckets in the third, while Bryant's 6-0 run to end the third extended into the fourth. The run consisted of two free throws from freshman Sydney Holloway (Morgantown, W. Va.) and an elbow jumped from senior Morgan Olander (Mansfield, Conn.). Holloway finished with a career-high 8-for-8 from the line, as she led the Bulldogs in scoring with 16 points.

Holloway's jumper extended the run to six and opened the scoring in the final ten minutes of play. Just a minute later, after getting her first-career start Stephanie Lesko (Rumson, N.J.) hit a laser three from the elbow extended to pull Bryant within 10 with 8:28 to play. That was nearly all the Bulldogs could muster up as the Black Bears responded with a 14-0 run to put the game out of reach, ultimately winning 77-52.

The Bulldogs shot 42.2 percent from the floor, season-high 50 percent from three (5-10) and 100 percent from the line (9-9). Maine also shot 100 percent from the charity stripe (3-3), while finishing 50.8 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from behind the arc. Sigi Koizar led both teams with 20 points, shooting 8-for-14 from the floor, 1-for-3 from three and 3-for-3 from the line. Koizar was backed by Tanesha Sutton's 12 points and Blanca Millan's 11.

The Bulldogs lost their first game of the season on the boards, as Maine grabbed 30 rebounds to Bryant's 26. After coughing the ball up only twice in the first half, the Black Bears turned the ball over 13 times in the game, while Bryant allowed Maine 31 points off 24 turnovers.

The Bulldogs will look to bounce back in their last game before the holiday break when UMass Lowell visits the Chace on Wednesday at 4 p.m.