PRINCETON?Despite a 12 point, nine rebound effort from senior Shaunice Parker (Waldorf, Md./West Lake), the Rider University women's basketball team lost a non-conference game at cross-town rival Princeton Tuesday night.
“The effort was there tonight,” said head coach Lynn Milligan. “When you are in a funk like this, you can't make mistakes and we just turned the ball over too much. We have control over the mistakes that we are making.”
Also for Rider (2-11), junior Amanda Sepulveda (Perth Amboy/Hun) had 11 points with junior Ashley Anderson (East Orange) adding 10 points and eight rebounds off the bench.
“When Ashley keeps it simple she has the ability to be very successful,” Milligan said. “Amanda has struggled a little with her shooting and unfortunately that has been going on all season but she is working hard and doing the things we need her to do.”
The Broncs opened the game on a 4-0 run, two points each by Parker and freshman Sarah Homan (Upper Darby, Pa./Delco Christian). Homan, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week last week, finished with four points and five rebounds in her first collegiate start.
A 12-2 run gave Princeton (5-9) a 12-6 lead five minutes into the game.
Trailing by eight with 13 minutes remaining in the first half, Rider used a 7-0 run, four points by Anderson to get within one, 21-20 with 8:19 left before halftime. Rider started the game making eight of its first 16 shots but finished the half making only two of its next nine shots and shot 31 percent in the second half.
Leading 28-25, a late 6-0 run by the Tigers gave Princeton a 34-25 lead at intermission.
Up by 10 with 16:37 left in the game, the Tigers went on a 7-0 run, five points by Jessica Berry, to open up their largest lead of the game 46-29 with 12:48 left. Berry had seven points in the contest.
“We had a couple of stops and then gave up an offensive rebound and an open three,” Milligan said. “We got two open shots and missed them both and we couldn't answer.”
Rider scored 12 of the next 18 points, six points from Sepulveda as the Broncs got to within 61-49 with five minutes remaining but that was as close as Rider could get.
The Tigers were led by Krystal Hill with 14 points and Devona Allgood who had 12 points and a game-high 16 rebounds.
Princeton out-rebounded Rider 38-35 and caused 21 Bronc turnovers.
Princeton leads the all-time series 18-8 and the Tigers are 11-1 all-time against Rider in Jadwin Gym. The Broncs won in Lawrenceville 45-42 last season with Princeton posting a 74-45 win during the 2006-07 season.
The Broncs have lost 10 straight with Princeton breaking a five-game losing streak.
“If we continue to improve our effort and learn from our mistakes, we're going to turn this thing around,” Milligan said. “We've got to continue to fight and we will. The kids are with us and we are going to get this headed in the right direction.”
Rider travels to Siena for a women's-men's television doubleheader on Friday in Albany, New York. Both games can be seen on ESPNU. “Both games went into overtime last year against Siena so we know it will be a battle,” Milligan added. “It is a MAAC game and all of the league games are battles.”
