SUMMARY 

On Saturday, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore improved its conference record to 5–0 with a 58-47 victory against Delaware State.

Brianna Barnes led the game with 18 points, while Ashanti Lynch and Dakieran Turner added nine each. Turner led in rebounds with seven and Kalise Hill contributed a team high five assists in the win.

THE SCORE 

Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks (12–10, 5–0 MEAC) — 58 

Delaware State (4–17, 1–5 MEAC) — 47 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED 

UMES scored the first baskets with Dayshawna Carter's layup and free throw for a 3-0 lead. After Lynch's perfect free throws, Barnes began her afternoon with a layup assisted by Hill for a 7-2 lead over Delaware State. Free throws led the Hawks' first-period scoring, with UMES shooting 12-of-14.

In the second quarter, the Hawks' offense slowed, with the Hornets winning, 14-13. At 8:33, Carter made her first three-pointer. Kaliya Perry made her first field goal, and Turner connected on two free throws, allowing Delaware State to score two layups and consecutive three-pointers for a halftime score of 33-21.

Delaware State caught fire behind the arc, hitting 3-of-4 shots, giving the Hornets a 16-13 advantage. Desi Taylor emerged for the Hawks with two three-pointers, the first at the period's start and another with 1:27 left. Jailynn Clayton scored her first points and the team's final point of the quarter with a jumper, sending the maroon and grey to a 46-37 lead heading into the fourth.

UMES won the final quarter 12-10 after Turner led the Hawks with seven points and Perry's three from her layup and foul shot. Barnes scored the final points for the Hawks with a jumper to move UMES to a program-best 5-0 in conference play. Turner, Perry and Barnes contributed to a 12-8 run in the final period.
 
BY THE NUMBERS 

UMES is off to its first 5–0 conference start in program history. 

Brianna Barnes led all scorers with 18 points to go along with 5 rebounds and two assists and one steal.  marking her 12th game this season with double-digit points.  

Kalise Hill's five assists today was her second highest assist total of the season. 

UMES shot 87.5% at the free throw line converting on 21-of-24. Ashanti Lynch converted 5-of-6 at the line shooting 83.3%. 

The Hawks' bench contributed heavily outscoring Delaware State 26-18 in today's victory. 

COMMENTS FROM HAWKS HEAD COACH MALIKAH WILLIS 

Thoughts on the victory

"I think we were ready to play, which was going to be the question mark — whether we'd be rusty or not. We came out aggressive right away and executed the game plan early on. We had a little bit of a drop-off in the second quarter — we lost that quarter by one — but we weren't in foul trouble. Our staff knows how to handle that; we're not new to it. Overall, we were just ready to play."

How the Hawks' conditioning and physicality faired after weather postponements 

"I think we did great. I mean, for two weeks we've been running — we ran in practice the majority of that time. They were ready to stop running and get up against some competition. So I feel like we're in shape. We didn't have any drop-off there, and we just have to keep the momentum going."

On the fourth quarter push by the Hawks

"Yeah, we just tried to eliminate fouling and focus on moving our feet. We only had seven steals, which is kind of low for us, but it was smarter basketball. We forced a few shot-clock violations and things like that. We played a little more patiently instead of being super aggressive and trying to speed them up."
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How UMES plans to continue its streak in conference play

"Oh man, it's going to be tough. We're on the road, so we've just got to go one day at a time. Everybody's giving us their best shot, and we have to give them our best shot. Again, our poise and patience are going to be the things that set us apart."

NEXT UP 

UMES will face North Carolina Central in Durham, NC., Monday, Feb. 2, at 5:30 p.m.