BOSTON, MASS. (December 7, 2024) – Sophomore rookie Hialeah Turner-Foster (Mashpee, Mass.) once again led the Beacons in scoring in her first career start. Despite the effort, the UMass Boston women's basketball team fell short against the Eastern Connecticut State Warriors from the Clark Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.

The Basics
UMass Boston 53 – 64 Eastern Connecticut State University
UMass Boston 2-7 (1-2 Little East Conference)
ECSU 2-7 (1-0 LEC)

How it Happened

• Turner-Foster got things going for UMass Boston from the charity stripe to put an end to the five-point jump the Warriors charged out to. Sophomore Vanessa Bucha (Aschnuet, Mass.) scored the game's first field goal inside the paint. She tested successfully when trying her first shot from downtown to cut it to 7-13. Turner-Foster closed out the opening quarter with a layup off the dish from junior captain Sibayla Jensen (Portland, Ore.)
• Turner-Foster would take a one-point lead for UMass Boston three minutes into the second half for the game's first advantage for the Beacons. Bucha would connect again from downtown to extend the lead to two. First-year guard Tajeiha Madison (Brockton, Mass.) closed out the quarter with a layup in the closing moments to capitalize on a positive showing for UMass Boston in the second quarter, as they led by four 28-24.
• Bucha would slash her way to the paint to put the first points of the third quarter on the board for UMass Boston following a five-minute drought. Junior guard Tatiannah Fevry would join the scoring tally to close the third quarter off a paint jumper.
• The Beacons scored 19 in the fourth quarter, led by first-year forward Ashleigh Lagor (Millbury, Mass.) with five points, but ultimately couldn't close the gap despite a fourth-quarter push, as they fell to the Warriors following the closing buzzer.

By the Numbers

• Rookies Tuner-Foster and Lagor led the offensive charge with 13 points each. Turner-Foster swiped a career-high six steals on the defensive end by clogging the passing lane in transition to lead the Beacons on both ends of the floor.
• Bucha registered a career-high 10 points to go with two steals. Junior captain Beeban Jikiemi-Pearson (BJP) (London, Eng.), along with Fevry, led the effort on the boards in the absence of both sophomore forwards Samora Merchant (Brookfield, Mass.) and Sabanna Beerios (Providence, R.I.), who were out of today's action with an injury. The two guards combined for 12 of the Beacons' 30 rebounds (six each.).

Who's Next:

• The Beacons will fly south to Daytona Beach, Florida, for their next matchup on Saturday, December 28, in the first round of the Florida Sunshine Shootout against the Stevens College Ducks at 12:00 p.m noontime.
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