SOUTH ORANGE, NJ – The Rider University women's basketball team struggled with a quick turnaround Friday morning, falling 78-40 at Seton Hall. The Broncs fall to 3-6 on the season, closing out non-conference play. The Pirates improve to 7-3 on the year.
 
The Pirates jumped out to an early lead from the start. Leading 9-4, Seton Hall went on a 16-1 run to close out the first and build a 25-5 lead after opening ten minutes.
 
The second quarter was competitive early with ToniRenee Blanford (Montclair, NJ/The Patrick School[Union College]) and Emily Strunk (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) knocking down jumpers. Leading 31-9, the Pirates went on an 11-0 run and led 44-11 at the half.
 
Makayla Firebaugh (Winchester, VA/James Wood) opened the second half with an and-one lay-up, and a triple by Raphaela Toussaint (Kingston, Ontario/Lincoln Prep) cut the lead to 46-17. Down 57-19, Rider went on an 8-2 run to close out the quarter, outscoring the Pirates 16-15 in the quarter, but Seton Hall still led 59-27 after three.
 
Down 73-31 midway through the fourth, Rider went on a 7-0 run, capped by a three from Maya Hyacienth (Nottingham, United Kingdom/City of London Academy).
 
Quotes & Notes
"We ran into a really good team that's playing really well right now on their home floor. The short rest from Wednesday night caught up with us a little bit, but we've got to be better."
 
"You have to give credit to Seton Hall for their defense, but some of the turnovers were on us as well. We have got to do a better job of staying in our offense, and complete the passes we need to complete to keep ourselves going."
 
"In the second half, we came out and played a lot more like Rider. The first half wasn't Rider basketball and the second half was more who we want to be." – Head Coach Lynn Milligan
 
"I definitely felt comfortable today. I was just out there playing basketball and things happened to work in my favor. I can always come down and rebound, and like coach said, 'that's my role coming off the bench'." – Junior Forward ToniRenee Blanford
 
- The Pirates extend their lead in the all-time series to 12-0.
- Blanford finished with career-highs in points (11) and rebounds (8).

Broncs By The Numbers
- Rider shot 31.3% (15-48) from the field and 27.8% (5-18) from three. The Pirates shot 46.9% (30-64) from the floor and 20.0% (3-15) from behind the arc.
- The teams each had 35 rebounds. Seton Hall held a slim 9-8 edge on the offensive glass.
- The Broncs had seven assists on 15 made baskets led by two each from Amanda Mobley (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh) and Molly Lynch (Sea Girt, NJ/Rutgers Prep).
- The Pirates held a 44-18 advantage on points in the paint, and 35-7 edge in points off turnovers.
 
Up Next
- Rider hits the road for the annual Buffalo trip, beginning with Canisius on Dec. 17 at 1 p.m.