INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Sophomore Rayne Durant (New Haven, Conn.) scored 12 points, as the UMass Lowell women's basketball team (0-6) fell, 69-44, at Butler (5-1) in Hinkle Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon.  

"It was good to see some of our injured reserves suited up and available for today's game," said Head Coach Denise King. "To have three players in double digits shows that our offensive chemistry is progressing, giving us multiple options for scoring."

Durant also contributed five rebounds on the day. Redshirt-senior Sydney Watkins (Indianapolis, Ind.) and senior Alex Gitchenko (Ashdod, Israel) both recorded 10 points. Watkins also produced four steals, three rebounds, and three assists, while Gitchenko added three steals. Freshman Sille-Liis Mölder (Tallinn, Estonia) scored seven points with six rebounds and two assists.  

The Bulldogs would take a 4-0 advantage within the first couple of minutes of the contest, but their momentum was broken up by a Watkins layup, recording UMass Lowell's first points of the day at 7:36 in the first quarter. 

Although Butler would add four more, but the River Hawks dug deep and put away three baskets in a row, including two from Durant, to tie the game at 10-10 with 2:47 on the clock. UMass Lowell and Butler then went shot-for-shot in the final minutes of the quarter, heading into the second deadlocked at 12-12.  

The River Hawks answered a Butler bucket to start quarter two with a 7-0 scoring stretch, led by a three-pointer from Rice, to give UMass Lowell its first lead of the contest, 19-15, at 7:57. A five-point scoring run for the Bulldogs would help them regain the lead, and although Mölder drained a go-ahead shot from behind the arc at 4:21, the home team quickly responded with one of its own to regain the upper hand, 23-22. Butler was able to create some breathing room with eight of the last nine points in the period to take a 31-23 lead into the break.

The third quarter would begin with a basket from each squad, however the Bulldogs quickly took control with an 8-0 run to lead 41-25.  The River Hawks would finish the quarter on a high note, recording four consecutive points. Heading into the final quarter, UMass Lowell trailed by 13, 46-33. 

UMass Lowell grabbed the first points of the fourth, but was quickly answered by a five-point spurt for the Bulldogs to stretch the difference to 51-35. Butler would later go on a 9-0 run, all totaled by Butler's leading point scorer, Caroline Strande.  

Mölder would tally the last bucket for the River Hawks, beating out the shot clock before Butler went onto seal the 69-44 outcome.  

Up next, the River Hawks will travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico to compete in the Puerto Rico Clasico, first facing UNC Wilmington on Friday, November 29, with a scheduled tipoff for 5:00 p.m.