WATERVILLE, M.E. - UMass Boston Women's Basketball opened their season at the Charlie Ryan classic hosted by Thomas College on Saturday afternoon. Matched up with Colby College in their opening game, the Beacons battled to take a late lead before eventually falling by a final score of 59-56.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 56, Colby College 59
UMass Boston (0-1)
Colby College (1-0)
HOW IT HAPPENED
One of the Beacons' top returning scorers,
Sunny Green got to work quickly in the first quarter. Her three-point play opened up the scoring for the game and she later added a bucket in the paint to flip an 8-7 deficit into a 9-8 lead. Newcomer Skyeler Sandison also got in on the fun, knocking down a pair of jumpers to send the Beacons into the second quarter with an 11-8 lead.
The Beacons' new additions continued to show up on the scoresheet. Sandison, Samora Merchant, and Sophie Bradbury combined to score nine straight points for the Beacons to build out a seven-point lead with four minutes to play. Colby, however, was persistent, scoring six unanswered to cut their deficit to one heading into the halftime break. Â
In the third quarter, Paige Olivierre found her stride. She contributed six of the Beacons first eight points of the half including a layup that knotted the game at 30. After a pair of Sandison free throws gave them a two point advantage, Olivierre popped again, going on a 6-1 run by herself to give the Beacons a 40-33 lead, their largest of the afternoon.Â
The Mules continued to hang around, piecing together a run that spanned the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth swinging the advantage in their favor, 46-41.Â
With under three minutes left to play, Sandison sent home her ninth and tenth points of the game to give UMass Boston a 54-50 lead. A layup and a three-pointer on back-to-back possessions gave Colby the one-point advantage and they would go on to hand the Beacons a season-opening loss 59-56.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Sandison stood out in her team debut tying a team high with eight rebounds and scoring 10 points on 4-6 shooting from the floor
- UMass Boston shooting came up big down the stretch as they hit seven of 11 shots from the floor in the fourth quarter
- Olivierre had an all-around strong debut, leading the team with 12 points while racking up seven rebounds and blocking three shots
- The Beacons are now 3-14 all-time when facing the Mules
WHO'S NEXT
The team's second game of the Charlie Ryan Tournament will tip off at 2 PM on Sunday, November 12 when the Beacons take on the hosts in the Thomas College Terriers.
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