SUMMARY

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia – The University of Maryland Eastern Shore (4-8) took Virginia (7-5) to the wire through the first half, but the Cavaliers pulled away in the second half to take an 80-64 win.

THE SCORE

Virginia Cavaliers (7-5) - 80

Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (4-8) - 64

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Hawks ran a close contest through the first half with Ashanti Lynch leading the scoring effort for UMES with 10 first half points. Lynch got UMES started in the first quarter with five points with Dakieran Turner and Mahogany Lester adding four and three, respectively, as the Hawks trailed 22-14 after one.

In the second quarter, however, UMES took the fight to Virginia, outpacing the Cavaliers to the tune of 19 points to 11 to tie the game at 33 apiece at the halftime break. Lynch capped her half with another five points for the Hawks. Brianna Barnes also got into the fray with her first four points of the game while also pulling down three boards to go along with a pair of assists and a steal. While the Hawks dropped shot 14-of-36 for the half to the Cavaliers' 12-of-26, Virginia was able to do damage at the free throw line with seven points coming from the stripe in the half.

Coming out of the half, Virginia outscored the Hawks 22-13 in the third quarter. Lynch, though, continued her strong run while her and Barnes scored another six points each. The Cavaliers, however, were able to grab control of the boards through the second half with a 19-9 rebounding advantage to cap a 40-24 advantage for the game.

Zamara Haynes helped keep the Hawks punching through the fourth quarter as she scored the Hawks' first seven points of the final frame before finishing the quarter with nine of her 13 total points. Lainey Allen and Lester helped lift the Hawks' scoring efforts with another four and three points, respectively, but it was not enough to fight off Virginia's 25-point effort to close the game.

BY THE NUMBERS

The Hawks were outrebounded for only the second time this season, 40-24. UMES still holds a 470-408 rebounding advantage for the season with an average of 39.2 per game.

Ashanti Lynch's 16 points against Virginia is the third straight game of double-digit points for her and the fourth game of the season she has hit that mark. Lynch hit double-digit points three times last season in 30 games played, a mark she's now bested in 11 games this season.

Lynch, Zamara Haynes and Brianna Barnes each passed the double-digit scoring mark against Virginia with 16, 13 and 10 points, respectively. It's the first game of the season UMES has had three players hit double-digit points in the same game.

The Hawks shot above their season shooting percentage average of 37.1% with a 39.7% mark while going 25-of-63. The 63 attempts also marked a season-high for UMES, surpassing 61 attempts against Illinois.

UMES tied its single game best performance of the season in assists with 13 on the night. The effort matches the Hawks' mark in their first game of the season against VCU.

COMMENTS FROM HAWK HEAD COACH MALIKAH WILLIS

Reflection on game
"I thought it was a complete 180 transition from our last game and a great start to the first quarter, which had been lacking. Our first five took it seriously. We told them they needed to start preparing like champions, and it starts in warmups—things like that. They had a great first half. We just gotta string all four quarters together. UVA is a great team with their size and height. We got outrebounded and were not used to that, but it's expected when you're going up against 6'7", 6'5", or 6'4" players."
 
Aggresion continuing to be the brand of UMES women's basketball
"My message is always to stay aggressive, but the game plan was to attack downhill. I told them we've got to come away with something on offense—if it's not two points, it's free throws. So that's what we wanted to do."
 
Dakieran Turner's Impact
"DK (Dakieran Turner) has been consistent. I know she's never going to back away from a challenge. She doesn't care how tall, how short, how anything—because she's a winner. She comes from a winning pedigree in high school, things like that. She's hard on herself. She wants to get those rebounds, putbacks, and defend. She doesn't want anyone scoring on her. It's just part of what she brings every day, and her competitiveness shows in practice. I trust her in that manner. That's why she's starting, and that's why she's getting out there and playing against these other opponents."
 
Hosting Mississippi State and taking advantage of opportunities  
"Every game, we talk about opportunities. At the end, whether we missed them or not, it's just another opportunity. It's a way to continue making a statement. Win or lose, what's happening right now is that we're growing, and other people are noticing. It's about us. It's about us getting better, sharing the ball, and not turning it over. Tonight, we finally did a great job not turning it over, but during the ones we did, they were huge, and they were unforced. The team sees it, and we are holding each other accountable."

NEXT UP

The Hawks face Mississippi State at home on Friday at noon before taking a week off before heading to Georgetown on Dec. 28 for a 7 p.m. game.