AMHERST, Mass. – The UMass Lowell women's basketball team (0-9) fell to the Massachusetts Minutewomen (2-8) in a Kennedy Cup rivalry match on Sunday afternoon in Amherst.
 
Freshman Cire Worley (Philadelphia, Penn.) led the team with 12 points on 4-8 shooting and grabbed two rebounds. Fellow freshman Abbey Lindsey (Staten Island, N.Y.) added 10 points and three assists. Redshirt junior Sydney Watkins (Indianapolis, IN) had team-highs with eight rebounds, six assists and four steals to go with nine points on the afternoon.
 
The River Hawks had a 6-4 lead to open the first quarter, but a 6-0 Massachusetts run gave the hosts the advantage. Abbey Lindsey knocked down a three and Mili Carrera hit a nice layup for quick 5-point swing to put UMass Lowell back in front. The hosts answered with two jumpers late to lead 14-11 after 10 minutes.
 
Massachusetts held the lead in the second quarter, but the River Hawks were resilient, fighting to stay within one possession. Sydney Watkins and Maddie Rice hit big shots to make it a three-point game as the Minutewomen called timeout just before the media.
 
UMass Lowell had a scoring drought over four minutes, shooting 0-8 from the field, as the hosts pushed the lead to six. Massachusetts hit a rough patch late in the half, shooting 0-4 over two minutes. The hosts broke the drought an extended the run to 7-0, pushing the lead to double digits with a minute and a half to play.
 
Cire Worley's jumper and free throw with just over a minute broke the scoring drought for the River Hawks and bring them within nine points. After a UMass Lowell timeout, Sydney Watkins had a steal-and-score to continue chipping away at the lead. Abbey Lindsey hit a three and Cire Worley had a big block to close the half and bring the River Hawks within six at the break.
 
The River Hawks struggled to take care of the ball in the third quarter, turning it over three times in the opening minutes. Massachusetts took advantage and extended the lead to 10 points, forcing the visitors into a timeout.
 
Back-to-back makes out of the timeout closed the gap, but the Minutewomen answered with a three to give the hosts a nine-point cushion. UMass Lowell stayed within single digits after three, trailing by seven with 10 minutes to play.
 
The fight was there from the River Hawks, staying within single digits throughout the fourth. Sydney Watkins' layup brought UMass Lowell within eight with just over five minutes to play. Massachusetts pushed the lead to 10, but the River Hawks had chances to cut the advantage. Shots would not fall from behind the arc and the hosts took control of the game late.
 
The Minutewomen held on to win 62-52 and UMass Lowell fell to 0-9 on the season. Next up, the River Hawks host Dartmouth at the Costello Athletic Center on Thursday night.