LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Rider University women's basketball team was defeated, 53-52, on a pair of free throws with seven seconds remaining Saturday afternoon. The Broncs fall to 2-6 on the season, while the Bulldogs improve to 3-7 on the year.
Both offenses struggled to get going in the opening quarter.
Kristina Ekofo (Brussels, Belgium/ Établissement Des Soeurs De Notre Dame[North Dakota State University/Northeastern Oklahoma A&M]) had six for the Broncs in the first 10 minutes, but Yale held a 9-8 lead after the opening quarter.
After a steal and fast-break layup by
Alena Cofield (Langhorne, PA/Neshaminy) gave Rider a 10-9 lead early in the second, the Bulldogs countered with a 10-0 run. A three from
Emmy Roach (Littlehampton, Australia/Heathfield) would trim the deficit to 23-19, but Yale would go into the halftime break with a 26-19 advantage.
Out of the break, Cofield made a layup, then following a free throw from
Aliya McIver (White Plains, NY/White Plains),
Deb Okechukwu (Washington, DC/Archbishop Carroll [Harcum CC/CCBC – Essex]) hit a three in the corner, and Ekofo scored inside to cap an 8-0 run that gave Rider the lead. After Yale went ahead 33-30, another three from Okechukwu would tie the game, but Yale would lead 40-36 entering the fourth.
Down 44-40, an Okechukwu three, followed by an old-fashioned three-point play by McIver gave the Broncs the lead with just under three to play. After going back-and-forth, Yale connected on one of two from the line with 41 seconds remaining. Ekofo responded on the offensive side for the Broncs, connecting on a layup with 19 seconds left to give the Broncs a 52-51 lead, but a pair of Bulldog free throws with seven seconds left gave Yale the lead and after Rider's last-second heave was off the mark, it produced the final score.
Quotes & Notes
"We played a pretty good second half. We came out flat in the first half, I think we lacked a little bit of energy. Credit to Yale, they made more plays than we did down the stretch. We have been working on late game situations, because we knew we would be in more of them, but you can't simulate that type of pressure in practice, so I'm hoping moving forward, we do a little better job executing."
"We're moving beyond the point of moral victories. We played well at Navy and George Mason, and now we want to win these games. We don't just want to just play well, we want to get the win, and as a team we're definitely disappointed that we didn't come out with the win."
– Head Coach Jackie Hartzell
"I have a coaching staff that never tells me to stop shooting if I'm 0-for-30. In the moment as an athlete, you can't let the pressure get the best of you. I just focus on the bigger picture, which is just coming through whenever I can. I'm disappointed we lost, but the team is going in the right direction and I just want to continue to get comfortable in whatever role I can do to help the team."
– Junior Guard Deb Okechukwu
- Saturday's game was the first-ever between the two programs.
- Ekofo led all scorers with 18 points, scoring double digits for the seventh time this season.
- Okechukwu added 14, all in the second half, to finish in double figures for the fourth time this year.
- McIver tied a career-high with 12 rebounds to reach double digits for the second time this season.
Broncs By The Numbers
- Rider shot 37.3% (19-51) from the field, and 22.2% from three (4-18). The Bulldogs shot 30.0% (18-60) from the field and 28.6% (6-21) from three.
- The Broncs had eight assists on their 19 made baskets, led by five from McIver.
- Both teams finished with 28 rebounds, but Yale held an 18-13 edge on the offensive glass.
Up Next
The Broncs are off until next Saturday, when the team hosts Wagner for a 2 p.m. contest.
