LOWELL, Mass. – Kayla Gibbs (Teaneck, N.J.) eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau, but the UMass Lowell women's basketball team fell short against the Morgan State Bears, 65-59, on Thursday afternoon.
 
Needing six points entering the contest, Gibbs put up her third field goal to become the 16th player in program history to score 1,000 points with 6:26 left in the third quarter.
 
Connecting on all four of her three-point attempts, Jennifer Louro (Belmar, N.J.) led the hosts with 14 points, and Brianna Rudolph (Lynn, Mass.) added 11. Saoirse Power-Cassidy (Dublin, Ireland) went a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc to finish with 10 points.
 
The Bears (7-6) were led by Lexus Spears' 21 points, and Adre'onia Coleman's double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds). Braennan Farrar chipped in 16 points as well.
 
Trailing 9-3 in the first, the River Hawks (3-9) scored the next 10 points to build a four-point advantage heading into the second period.
 
Power-Cassidy drained a three to knot the score at 9-9 with 3:19 on the clock, and Oda Shackelford (Edinburgh, Ind.) added a bucket to give the hosts their first lead 62 seconds later.
 
Morgan State's nine points was the fewest total allowed by UMass Lowell in the first quarter this season.
 
The Bears came out of the break and scored the first five points to jump back in front at 14-13. After the visitors built an 18-15 lead, Louro drilled a triple to begin a 5-0 run.
 
Morgan State closed the first half on a 14-6 run to build a 32-26 at the half. The momentum continued in the opening three minutes of the half as the visitors opened a 38-28 advantage.
 
Gibbs' milestone bucket sparked a 9-2 spurt for the River Hawks as they climbed within 42-37 following a Louro triple with 4:31 on the clock.
 
UMass Lowell cut a 12-point deficit to six points to begin the fourth as they trailed 46-40. Back-to-back triples from Power-Cassidy and Louro got the hosts within 52-49 with just over five minutes to play in regulation.
 
The Bears opened a 59-51 lead as the clock went under 50 seconds to play, but a Megan Hendrick (Alexandria, Va.) three made it a five-point contest with 42.6 clicks left.
 
The River Hawks entertain Cornell on New Year's Eve at 12 p.m. to wrap up their non-conference slate.