Feb. 14, 2015 Box Score
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - On a day where the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) nation comes together, the women's basketball team was victorious as they defeated rt. 13 rival Delaware State (DSU), 96-59, in front of 4,037 screaming fans. For the Lady Hawks (9-13, 6-6 MEAC), they secured another home winning season under UMES Women's Basketball Head Coach Fred Batchelor as their 8-4 inside the William P. Hytche Athletic Center.
Despite the slow start, Maryland Eastern Shore dominated all facets of the contest. UMES scored 42 points on 27 Lady Hornet turnovers. In the paint, the squad had the advantage, outscoring the opposition, 58-26. Junior Alexis Udoji (Randlph, Mass.) fell a board shy from another double-double, registering 18 points and nine rebounds.
UMES outrebounded the Lady Hornets, 38-27, including 16 offensive rebounds. The club scored 18 second chance points whereas Delaware State managed nine points. Maryland Eastern Shore's bench squad was key, led by junior TeAmber Burke (Washington, N.C.). Burke finished with a game-high 22 points on 80-percent shooting (8-of-10) from the field.
After taking a halftime lead, 49-35, the Lady Hawks opened the second period on an 8-2 run, capped off by a long ball from Shawnee Sweeney (Chester, Va.), 57-37. UMES' momentum continued as they increased their lead, 72-42, with 11:30 left in the game. Delaware State could not slow down Maryland Eastern Shore's hot streak as they were down as much as 39 points, 96-57, with less than two minutes remaining. DSU's Nikkei Blackburn made a layup to make the final score, 96-59.
Before the game, Sweeney was recognized for her record-setting mark and finished with 16 points after going 4-of-5 from behind the arc. Freshman Moengaroa Subritzky (Auckland, New Zealand) posted 11 points, four boards, and three assists in the victory.
Furthermore, senior guard Jessica Long (Fort Washington, Md.) earned her third career double-double, tallying 18 points and a career-high 11 dimes. Also, the Maryland-product set two milestones. Long became the 21st Lady Hawk in the program's history to play at least 100 games. Long also moved into seventh on the UMES all-time steals leaderboard, surpassing Vanessa Velez (1995-98). She ended her afternoon with a game-high four steals.
Delaware State opened the game on a 10-0 run after a layup by Amber Bogard. At the 16:12 mark, the Lady Hawks trailed, 14-4, but not for long. Over the next five minutes, UMES made shot after shot as they went on a 19-0 spurt to take the lead, 25-14. DSU trimmed the deficit down to single-digits, 34-26, with less than six minutes before intermission. Maryland Eastern Shore withstood the Lady Hornets' charge as they made another push. UMES went on a 13-2 run to balloon the lead, 47-28. Delaware State ended the half on a 7-2 sprint to trim the deficit before halftime, 49-35.
For the Lady Hornets (5-18, 2-8 MEAC), Tierra Hawkins had a team-high 21 points and seven boards. Mikah Aldridge registered 13 points and four assists while Bogard and Blackburn each finished with 10 points in a losing effort.
UMES looks to make it three-in-a-row against the Howard Lady Bison. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Hytche.
For complete recaps, results and news of Hawk athletics, please visit www.umeshawks.com.
