Jan. 29, 2011

Box Score

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Chena Parker (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds but Howard held on for a 35-33 decision over the University of Maryland Eastern Shore women's basketball team at Burr Gymnasium Saturday.

Trailing by two in the final minute, UMES missed three of layups on separate possessions that could have sent the game into an extra session. Casey Morton (Mardela Springs, Md.) couldn't convert at the 1:08 mark, Sha-Kiyla Finney (Pourtsmouth, Va.) had an opportunity with 27 seconds left and Countney Braxton (Virginia Beach, Va.) missed a final attempt with 15 seconds on the clock.

Parker shot 5-for-10 from the floor and secured seven boards of the defensive glass for her second double-double of the season as UMES (7-13, 4-3) snapped a four-game winning streak in MEAC play. Tamoria Holmes scored a game-high 16 points for Howard (7-14, 4-4), which won for the second consecutive game.

Both teams shot 18.8 percent in the second half. Howard was 6-for-23 and UMES went 3-of-16 as each scored just 14 points and did not register a field goal for a 7:34 stretch in the period.

Howard jumped out to 14-4 lead on the strength of a hot start from Holmes. She scored the game's first six points while Saadia Dolyle, who finished with nine points and 10 boards, had four of her own. Adelle Walton finished the run with a jumper at the 8:01 mark.

UMES rallied to within seven on 3-of-4 free throws from Morton before Adobi Agbasi (Columbus, Ga.) cut it to 14-9 with a layup with 5:42 left. The basket halted a 2-for-15 start from the floor for UMES. The Lady Hawks scored four more on layups from Agbasi and Parker for a 14-13 deficit with 3:47 to go before the half.

A Holmes layup in transition stretched the lead to 18-15 with 3:10 left but a jumper by Agbasi and layup by Parker gave UMES its first lead of the game with 34 seconds left before the break.

Howard, though, regained control with a Holmes 3-pointer to go into the locker room up, 21-19.

Howard led by as many as six, 27-21, in the first three minutes of the second half when Holmes hit a jumper. UMES was able to knot the game with four free throws by Chelsea Sanders (Rochester, N.Y.) and Parker prior to a basket from Sanders at the 13:30 mark.

UMES took a two-point lead with a pair from the line by Agbasi with 12:27 left. Three minutes later, Holmes hit 1-of-2 from the line to pull the Lady Bison to within 29-28 with 9:32 left and Kara Smith ended the field-goal drought at 5:56 of the half with a jumper.

Parker hit another layup to give UMES its last lead of the game at 4:37 but Doyle tallied five quick points on a trey and layup with three minutes left. Agbasi finished with eight points and four boards while Morton had seven points and eight rebounds.

For the game, HU outshot UMES. The Lady Bison were 29.1 percent (16-of-55) and UMES went 11-for-43 (25.6 percent).

UMES next squares off with Hampton at the HU Convocation Center on Monday at 4:30 p.m. in a game that will televised on ESPNU.