ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – The Rider University women's basketball team saw its season come to an end Wednesday afternoon at the MAAC Tournament, falling to Niagara, 67-64. The Broncs close out the year at 10-21, while the Purple Eagles improve to 18-11 and advance to the MAAC Semifinals.
 
The Broncs used the three-pointer to stay in the game early. Makayla Firebaugh (Winchester, VA/James Wood) drained a pair and Jessika Schiffer (Iserlohn, Germany/Deutschhaus Gymnasium Würzburg [Buffalo]) and Sofie Bruintjes (Zwolle, The Netherlands/CTO Amsterdam) each hit from deep as the Broncs trailed 22-19 after one.
 
Leading 22-21 early in the second, Niagara went on a 12-2 run, taking a 34-23 lead, their largest of the game. Down 36-25, Rider went on a 6-0 run, including four points from Maya Hyacienth (Nottingham, United Kingdom/City of London Academy). Niagara led 38-31 at the half.
 
Down 40-31 early in the third, Rider scored six-straight points, capped by four-straight from Firebaugh to cut the lead to just three. The Purple Eagles slowly built the lead back up, leading 50-42 after three.
 
Trailing 57-47 with just over six minutes to play, Firebaugh scored Rider's next nine points, followed by a layup from Amanda Mobley (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh) cut the lead to just two. Following a Niagara three, Victoria Toomey (Dunmore, PA/Dunmore) made an and-one layup, missed the free throw, but got fouled and sank both additional shots from the charity stripe, making it 63-62 with 1:08 to play. The sides swapped baskets, then after a one-for-two trip to the line for Niagara, Rider had multiple chances to tie the game, but a pair of turnovers, the latter coming via an offensive foul call, ended the Broncs chances.
 
Quotes & Notes
"We came here with a refusal to lose mentality, and we didn't get that done today. It wasn't for a lack of heart, lack of soul, effort, want, desire, connectedness, togetherness, all of what goes in to who we are. We just came up short."
 
"It's no secret, you know how Niagara plays, but t's only frustrating if you let it get to you. Bottom line is we lost by three, and we had the ball in our hands with a chance to win it. We put ourselves in a position to win the ballgame." – Head Coach Lynn Milligan
 
"When they're coming to trap, we're going to have to go faster just to get away from that. At the same time, when we get that chance to not go 94 feet in five seconds, I just try to get everybody down there, calm down, and just try to get a good look out of it."
 
"We all saw yesterday that [I had a sense of urgency]. I think I needed to do a little more of that today. But for sure, not wanting it to end was going through my mind. Everyone who's supported us for the last five years, it's been a great run. Thank you." – Graduate Guard Amanda Mobley
 
- Niagara won all three games over the Broncs this season, extending its lead in the all-time series to 31-27.
- Firebaugh led Rider with 27 points, her 22^nd game in double figures this season. She closes out her junior season with 1,048 career points, good for 21^st in program history.
- Toomey added 13 points, her 14^th game in double figures this season.

Broncs By The Numbers
- Rider shot 48.9% (22-45) from the field, and 47.1% (8-17) from three. The Purple Eagles shot 35.9% (28-78) from the floor, and went 21.1% (4-19) from behind the arc.
- Niagara held a 42-35 advantage on the glass, including a 29-10 lead in offensive boards. Molly Lynch (Sea Girt, NJ/Rutgers Prep) had a career-high nine rebounds for Rider.
- The Broncs had 17 assists on their 22 made baskets, led by 11 from Mobley.