LOWELL, Mass. – The UMass Lowell women's basketball team (3-15, 3-3 AE) fell to the Binghamton Bearcats (6-12,1-4 AE), who picked up their first conference win of the season, on Saturday afternoon.
 
Graduate student Mili Carrera (Lima, Peru) scored a team-high 17 points and added a team-high four assists. Senior Leilani Rodriguez (Worcester, Mass.) and freshman Rayne Durant (New Haven, Conn.) combined for 27 points on the afternoon. Redshirt junior Sydney Watkins (Indianapolis, In.) grabbed a team-high eight rebounds and three steals to go with eight points and two blocks.
 
After the Bearcats knocked down a three on their first possession, Mili Carrera's three-point play got the River Hawks on the board and tied the game. Back-to-back stops on the defense allowed Leilani Rodriguez to give UMass Lowell the lead with a mid-range jumper. Sydney Watkins' three-point play gave the River Hawks an 8-7 lead at the first media.
 
Both sides went scoreless for over two minutes out of the break, with Binghamton hitting one of two free throws to tie the game at eight. Freshman Abbey Lindsey's (Staten Island, N.Y.) layup as time expired made it 12-11 Bearcats after one quarter.
 
Carrera opened the second quarter with two quick transitions buckets to put the River Hawks in front by three early in the frame. After a Binghamton jumper, Carrera drained a triple to give her 10 points. The Bearcats took the lead back with two quick scores out of the media timeout, but freshman Maddie Rice's (Charlottesville, Va.)  jumper ended the run.
 
Leilani Rodriguez scored five straight points as the River Hawks extended the lead to six points with just under two minutes to play in the half. Mili Carrera continued to make shots, hitting two free throws, and putting back a tough layup to put UMass Lowell ahead by 10, their largest lead of the half. The River Hawks led 35-28 at the halftime break.
 
Binghamton opened the second half with a 5-0 run, cutting the lead to two points and forcing the River Hawks into a timeout. Abbey Lindsey and Sydney Watkins scored for UMass Lowell, but the Bearcats continued to chip away at the lead and tied the game at the media timeout.
 
After scoreless droughts of over three minutes for both sides, Binghamton took the lead with two minutes to play in the third. Leilani Rodriguez hit all three free throws to break the host's drought and put UMass Lowell back in front. The River Hawks had a three-point lead heading into the fourth thanks to Carrera's late layup.
 
The teams went back-and-forth in the final frame. Rodriguez knocked down a much needed three for the River Hawks, giving them the lead. Binghamton answered and led by five at the final media timeout. The Bearcats pushed the lead to five, but a pair of free throws from Rayne Durant made it a one possession game with just under three to play.
 
Mili Carrera hit one of two with 35.2 seconds and the River Hawks trailed by three. Binghamton held a four-point lead with 8.8 to play and hit free throws late to secure the win.
Next up, UMass Lowell will visit Vermont on Thursday, January 25.