March 7 vs. No. 3 Stony Brook (3 p.m.)
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STONY BROOK, N.Y. -- The No. 3 River Hawks, who finished the regular season 11-8 overall and 10-6 in league games, will travel to No. 3 Stony Brook for the semifinals of the 2021 Hercules Tires America East Playoffs.
 
POSTSEASON HISTORY
This marks the River Hawks' fourth season eligible for the postseason at the Division I level. The program is currently 2-2 in America East post-season games.
 
Quarterfinal Appearances:
(2018-19) @ UMBC, L, 65-73
(2019-20) vs. UMBC, W, 66-58
(2020-21) vs. NJIT, W, 72-52
Semifinal Appearances:
(2019-20) @ Maine L, 54-67
 
A WIN WOULD
A win on Sunday would mark the River Hawks' first semifinal victory, including their third post-season win at the Division I level.
 
ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
For their efforts in the River Hawks 2020-21 campaign, sophomore Denise Solis was named to the America East All-Conference First Team along with an all-defensive nod, while junior Kharis Idom received Second Team honors.
 
SCOUTING STONY BROOK
The reigning America East Champions finished the regular season at 13-5 overall and 11-3 in conference play, to earn a second-place finish. The team won four of its last five games, falling to conference front-runner, Maine, 54-49 on Sunday, February 14. Junior guard Asiah Dingle is currently leading the team in points (11.1), assists (3.5) and steals (1.5). Senior India Pagan controls the boards for the Seawolves with 5.3 rebounds on the season. As a team, Stony Brook is shooting 40 percent from the field, including 25 percent on threes, and 67 percent from the line.
 
ABOUT THE (RE)MATCHUP
Earlier this season, the River Hawks welcomed the Seawolves during holiday break (Dec. 27 & 28), earning their first victory against the Long Island team at the Division I level.
 
In game one, Kharis Idom and Jaliena Sanchez posted a team-high 18 points to lead all River Hawk scorers. Sophomore Shamyjha Price added to the offense with a season-best 10 points to defeat the Seawolves, 63-60.
 
However, the River Hawks stumbled in game two, falling to the visitors 60-44. Sanchez shot 6-for-7 (85%) from the line and 2-for-5 (40%) from outside the arc. Kharis Idom added to the offense with nine points. Shamyjha Price totaled six rebounds, while sophomore Denise Solis chipped in with a career-high five steals and two blocks.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Four River Hawks scored in the double digits to help lead the UMass Lowell women's basketball team to a 72-52 victory over NJIT in America East quarterfinal action on Sunday afternoon at Costello Athletic Center.
 
Senior forward Tiahna Sears put up a team-high 15 points, going 6-for-11 in the paint. Kharis Idom added 14 points to the River Hawk total, including a team-best five steals. Forward Denise Solis tallied a team-high of eight off the glass, adding 12 points on five made field goals. Classmate Jaliena Sanchez rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points on the day, including a game-high five assists.
 
LEADING THE FLOCK 
Through all 20 games of the 2020-21, three different River Hawks have bounced between top statistical rankings. However, forward Denise Solis finishes the regular season atop the leader boards, averaging 11.6 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game. Kharis Idom follows closely behind with 10.3 ppg, shooting 34 percent from beyond the arc. Jaliena Sanchez is putting up 9.2 ppg, while adding a team-high 56 assists and 31 steals on the season. As a unit, UMass Lowell is shooting 37 percent (427-1101) from the floor, 26 percent (82-317) from beyond the arc, and 67 percent (235-351) from the foul line.
 
NATIONAL NEWS
The River Hawks are ranked first in the nation in three-point field goal percentage defense, holding their opponents to an average of 22.9 percent this season. Recently, the River Hawks held the hot-shooting Black Bears to just one triple in the second half of their Sunday contest. Lowell's most notable performance came against UAlbany (1.31), as the Great Dane's went 0-16 from beyond the arc.
 
BIRDS EYE VIEW
Denise Solis has consistently taken the right shots, having gone at least 50.0 percent from the floor in 14 of the 20 games this season. Solis's best performance came in the regular season finale when she matched her season-high of eight made field goals against the Wildcats. Currently, the sophomore is first overall in the league standings with a team-best 55.8 percent clip (86-154) from the field.
 
STAYIN' ALIVE
The River Hawks are the only America East members that still have both the men and women competing in the postseason. While the women defeated NJIT on Sunday, the men took down Stony Brook the previous day in a come from behind victory, 64-62.
 
HIGH-SCORING AFFAIR
The River Hawks 72-52 quarterfinal victory over the NJIT marks the first time in Division I history that Lowell has scored over 70 against an opponent in the postseason. It also marks their largest postseason margin, defeating the Highlanders by 20.
 
TURNING MISTAKES INTO POINTS
For the third time this season, the River Hawks matched their season-high of 22 points off of turnovers. Most notably, UMass Lowell forced 13 second-half turnovers en route to their Sunday victory over the Great Danes.
 
TRIPLE THE TROUBLE
Tiahna Sears, Denise Solis and Kaylen Banwareesingh are the three River Hawks to have recorded double-doubles this season. Banwareesingh tallied her first career multi-point performance against UAlbany (1.30), notching 10 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, while Sears posted 14 points and 11 rebounds at NJIT (1.2). Most recently, Denise Solis recorded her second double-digit affair of the 2020-21 season, with 17 points and 11 rebounds against Maine. 
 
BENCH PRESSURE
Through all 20 games this season, Kaylen Banwareesingh has been a force both offensively and defensively. The 6í0 sophomore is putting up more points than any other reserve player, averaging 5.0 points per game. On the defensive end, Banwareesingh leads the way with 12 blocks and 4.7 rebounds.
 
SOLIS FROM THE START
So far in 2020-21, the River Hawks have gone 9-1 after winning the opening tip, with Denise Solis being in the center of it all. The 6í1 forward has won 28 of 44 openers for a 63 percent average over her career.
 
LINE EM' UP
Out of their 20 games, UMass Lowell has used five different starting lineup combinations, their most common comprising of Jaliena Sanchez, Kharis Idom, Denise Solis, Shamyjha Price and Tiahna Sears. Idom is the lone River Hawk to have collected 20 starts on the season.
 
POINTS GALORE
For the first time since the 2014-15 season, the River Hawks scored over 80 points against an America East opponent when they defeated Hartford on Jan. 9, 81-45. The last time UMass Lowell tallied over 80 points against a league opponent was on Feb. 4, 2015 at UMBC, defeating the Retrievers 84-78.
 
SHARP SHOOTING
In the weekend sweep over New Hampshire, the River Hawks set a new season-high of 32 made field goals. With their strong shooting, Lowell recorded their best field goal percentage of the season, set at 57.1 percent.
 
HOLD, PLEASE
The River Hawks limited Hartford to just five points in the third quarter on Jan. 9. That marks the fourth time under head coach Tom Garrick that UMass Lowell has held an opponent to five points or less in a quarter - the most recent was last season against Binghamton, holding the Bearcats to only four points in the opening stanza.
 
FIVE-FINGER DISCOUNT
The River Hawks saw a season-high 13 steals in the victory over the Highlanders. Seven of nine River Hawks came away with at least one steal in the win.
 
NEED FOR SPEED
With the River Hawks Dec. 27 win against Stony Brook the squad saw a season-best 24 points off the fastbreak. Jaliena Sanchez paved the way for the home team, securing nine fastbreak points over the final three quarters.
 
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
Denise Solis saw plenty of action during her first year in a River Hawk uniform, as the only River Hawk to start in all 31 games for an average of 26.8 minutes per game. She has continued her run into her sophomore season, making a start in 19 games to average 29.1 minutes.
 
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
At least one River Hawk freshman has made an appearance throughout all 20 games this season. 6í3 forward, Sydney Coombs, is the only newbie to have started in four games, averaging a class-leading 11.8 minutes. The Newmarket, N.H. native also ranks third on the team with nine blocks.  Newbie guard Jaini Edmonds, has seen action in 18 games, averaging 10.5 minutes and 2.7 points per game. Overall, the freshman class has contributed 74 points and 49 rebounds for six percent of the River Hawk offense and seven percent of their defense.