LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell women's basketball team (2-21, 1-12 AE) saw its comeback effort fall short against the Bryant Bulldogs (8-19, 2-12 AE), falling 63-54 on Wednesday night at the Costello Athletic Center.
 
Sophomore Ivory Finley (Minneapolis, Minn.) led all scorers with 17 points and added six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Fellow sophomore Amaya Dowdy (Woonsocket, R.I.) had a big second half and recorded 10 points and 11 rebounds for her third double double of the season. Graduate student Mili Carrera (Lima, Peru) made her second straight start and added 12 points and three assists. Senior Jaliena Sanchez (Springfield, Mass.) tied her career high with eight assists on the night.
 
Bryant jumped out to an early 5-0 lead before Jaini Edmonds' triple got the River Hawks' offense going. The visitors had plenty of energy and put UMass Lowell under pressure from the opening tip and built a 13-7 lead midway through the first. Following the media timeout, the River Hawks held Bryant scoreless for over four minutes but struggled to get shots to fall to cut the lead. A layup at the end of the quarter gave Bryant a 15-9 lead with UMass Lowell shooting 2-13 from the field.
 
A 9-0 run over 3:41 from the Bulldogs extended the lead to 22-9 early in the second quarter, forcing the River Hawks to call a timeout. Mili Carrera and Amaya Dowdy combined out of the break to bring UMass Lowell within eight, but the hosts could not find a rhythm on the offensive end and put together a scoring run of their own. Mariona Planes Fortuny and Nicole Gallagher carried the Bryant offense, combing for 24 first half points as the visitors stretched the lead to 17 at the half.
 
The River Hawks came out of the locker room with great energy and went on a 6-0 run to start second half, forcing Bryant into an early timeout. The defensive pressure by UMass Lowell forced turnovers and bad shots, as well as opened the door for a comeback effort. The lead was cut to nine thanks to a layup from freshman Ella Ner (Bene Atarot, Israel). The River Hawks' offense found their stride and moved the ball well as Ivory Finley's three kept the game within distance. The run did not last as Bryant answered and shut down UMass Lowell for over three and a half minutes while knocking down free throws to maintain a 13-point edge heading into the final frame.
 
Ivory Finley and Amaya Dowdy led the charge in the fourth, putting up four quick points to bring the deficit down to 10 points. Mili Carrera began to heat up as the graduate student scored eight points in the quarter in a 12-2 run to get the River Hawks within four. Foul trouble and missed shots hurt UMass Lowell late and Bryant held off the comeback effort to take a 63-54 win.
 
The River Hawks return to action on Saturday, February 18 to take on Binghamton. Tip is slated for 2:00 p.m. at the Dr. Bai Lee Court in Vestal, New York.