LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Rider University women's basketball team fell at home to visiting Manhattan, 60-57, on Sunday afternoon in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) action inside Alumni Gymnasium.

The Broncs (15-10, 11-3 MAAC) suffered their second conference loss at home this year, while the Jaspers (8-17, 6-8 MAAC) snapped their two-game losing streak and evened the regular-season series with Rider.

Manhattan ended the game on a 12-3 run over the final 4:30 of action to earn the come-from-behind victory. Down the stretch, the Jaspers forced eight Rider turnovers over the final 10 minutes of play to erase a nine-point deficit.

Trailing by two at 56-54 with one minute remaining in regulation, the Broncs grabbed a defensive rebound and were fouled. Rider was able to convert on one of two attempts to pull within one at 56-55. Following a pair of Manhattan free throws, junior guard Stella Johnson (Denville, NJ/Morris Catholic) brought the Broncs back to within one at 58-57 on a driving lay-up with 25 seconds left.

The Jaspers turned the ball over with a five-second call on the ensuing possession and Rider had the ball with a chance to take the lead. After working the clock down, the Bronc three-point attempt from the wing clanked off the back iron and Manhattan pulled down the rebound with three seconds left.

The Jaspers would hit both free throws and the Broncs game-tying three-point attempt was no good at the buzzer.

Stella led the charge for the Broncs with 22 points six rebounds and five assists, while classmate Tracey Goodman (Lansdale, PA/Phil-Mont Christian Academy) had a career-high 10 points off the bench.

NOTES & QUOTES
"Credit to Manhattan they came in here and played really well. That fourth quarter they really took it to us and we didn't react as well as we could have. Those turnovers really caught us when we had the lead. It's a tough MAAC game in February. We weren't quite ready today to do what we needed to for the full 40 minutes."  – Rider Head Coach Lynn Milligan

- The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the Broncs versus the Jaspers.  
- Rider is now 11-3 in MAAC play for the second time under Head Coach Lynn Milligan and the second time in program history. It matches their previous best 14-game start to conference play which the team achieved during their historic 2016-17 campaign.
- Rider shot over 41 percent from the field (19-of-46). The Broncs converted on 59 percent (13-of-22) of their free-throw attempts.

BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS
- Stella had a game-high 22 points on 7-of-14 shooting to go along with six rebounds, five assists and two steals. In her career, she now has 238 career steals which ranks second in program history. She is 17 steals away from breaking the program's all-time record.
- Goodman set a new career-best with 10 points thanks to knocking down 4-of-6 shots from the field. She hit a pair of three-pointers and added five rebounds.
- Senior point guard Lexi Posset had seven points, five assists and two steals.

UP NEXT
Rider returns to action on Thursday, February 21 with a home conference tilt against Quinnipiac. Opening tip is slated for 7:02 pm as the Broncs are looking to avenge to the Bobcats earlier this season in Connecticut.