LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Tied 56-56 with three minutes to play, the Rider University women's basketball team outscored NJIT 8-3 down the stretch to earn its first win of the season Wednesday night. The Broncs are now 1-5 on the season, while the Highlanders even their record at 4-4.
 
Lenaejha Evans (Conway, SC/Conway) came off a screen and fired a jumper from the top of the key that gave the Broncs a lead they would not give up again. Leading 62-59, the Highlanders had a final opportunity to tie the game with eight seconds remaining, but Amanda Mobley (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh) stole the inbound pass, was fouled, and knocked down both free throws to seal the victory.
 
NJIT opened the game strong, building an 8-2 lead in the opening five minutes. Jessika Schiffer (Iserlohn, Germany/Deutschhaus Gymnasium Würzburg [Buffalo]), knocked down a three, then grabbed a rebound and made an outlet pass to Anna Ekerstedt (Vargburg, Sweden/Marks Gymnasium[Broward College]) as part of a 7-0 run that had Rider back on top. After an NJIT bucket briefly gave the Highlanders the lead back, it was another 7-0 run to close out the opening quarter, all seven points by Evans that would eventually be the game's final lead change.
 
Neither team gained traction in the second quarter as NJIT never pulled within two and the Broncs never led by more than six, going into the break up 28-22.
 
The Broncs appeared to pull away in the third. Leading 36-31, the Broncs went on a 9-3 run, capped by a Schiffer three pointer to go up 11, Rider's largest lead of the game.
 
Leading 47-36 early in the fourth, NJIT went on a 14-3 run, including a pair of threes by Maria Fux to tie the game at 50. The game would be tied again at 52, 54, and 56 setting up Rider's final push.
 
Quotes & Notes
"A pretty good game for us, and one that we needed. We needed to get ourselves on the winning side of things. I thought we had some really good possessions, and overall I thought it was a good home win, and a good stepping stone for us. It's nice to see these ladies get rewarded for the work they put in these last few weeks."
 
"Raphie does a good job at getting from one side of the basket to the other and she can pogo real quick. She's able to get up and down really quickly, and she's starting to read the ball better. The best thing she does is she always goes for the ball with two hands."
 
"I think everygame is going to be different for us. We need to be smart with our numbers, and we got a couple of breakouts today. We definitely did a better job not giving up fast break points. We put an onus on that in practice, because I think we can be a pretty good defensive team when we're back and set." – Head Coach Lynn Milligan
 
"Coach always says, 'The play isn't over until the ball is in the basket.' So going into every possession with that mentality and do whatever I can to help the team."
 
"Defense is something we work on constantly in practice, and we are building that mentality of keeping people in front of us and relying on each other. We're just buying into that." – Sophomore Forward Raphaela Toussaint
 
"It feels good, it's something we've been working for all week. I wouldn't say I'm looking for my shot first, but if I know my shot is there, then I'll take it."
 
"Playing with Jess is really good, she brings a lot of energy which helps the team. Even though she's new, she's learning new things every day and has really grown." – Senior Guard Lenaejha Evans
 
- Rider extends its lead in the all-time series to 5-1, taking the fourth straight between the programs.
- Evans set her career-high in scoring for the second time this season with 22 points.
- Raphaela Toussaint (Kingston, Ontario/Lincoln Prep) had seven offensive rebounds on her way to her second double-double of the season, finishing with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
- Makayla Firebaugh (Winchester, VA/James Wood) had a career-high five assists.

Broncs By The Numbers
- Rider shot 33.9% (19-56) from the field, and 20.0% (3-15) from three, but held the Highlanders to 36.5% (19-52) from the field and just 17.6% (3-17) from deep. Both teams were lethal at the free-throw line, with the Broncs shooting 88.5% (23-26) and NJIT shooting 81.8% (18-22).
- The Broncs had 10 assists on their 19 made baskets, led by Firebaugh's five.
- Rider out-rebounded NJIT 36-31, including a 12-8 advantage on the offensive glass.
- After struggling in their previous two games in transition, Rider had 17 fast break points to just seven for NJIT.
  
Up Next
- Rider takes to the road for a game against Army on Saturday at 1 p.m.