LOWELL, Mass. – Sophomore Maddie Rice (Charlottesville, Va.) totaled a team best and career high of 18 points, as UMass Lowell (3-17, 1-7 AE) fell, 52-38, to NJIT (7-14, 4-4 AE) on Thursday morning at the Tsongas Center in America East play.

"Education Day is always one of my favorite games of the year," said Head Coach Denise King. "To see the kids cheering for our ladies and the excitement on their faces really warms my heart. I commend our girls for fighting back to bring it to a one-possession game and hope that we can stay solid defensively for our next game."

Rice went 7-for-11 from the field, while also collecting five boards, one steal and one block. Sophomore Abbey Lindsey (Staten Island, N.Y.) followed with 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals, one assist and one block. Lindsey played the full 40 minutes, seeing her first conference start of the season. Sophomore Rayne Durant (New Haven, Conn.) recorded a team high of eight rebounds.

Lindsey would record the lone UMass Lowell basket of the first quarter at 5:40, as NJIT put together its largest run of the game, notching 12 points. The River Hawks and the Highlanders would head into the second quarter with NJIT leading by a score of 20-2.

The River Hawks took control in the second quarter, though, as they strung together an eight-point run from the get-go. Rice and Lindsey found their groove, as they each tallied six points to help the River Hawks chip away at the difference to go into the break with NJIT in the lead, 23-15.

UMass Lowell outscored NJIT in the third quarter, using a nine-point run to pull within five, 31-26. This run included a nifty steal by senior Amina Kameric (Seattle, Wash.) resulting in a layup for the River Hawk guard at 5:02 followed by a huge three-pointer from Rice at 3:03. UMass Lowell would end the quarter on a three-point play from Rice, as she hit a layup and drew contact to send her to the line with the Highlanders hanging onto their lead, 34-29.

Rice started the fourth quarter with a noteworthy block followed by a steal at the opposite end of the court and finished by tapping in a layup. The Highlanders reestablished themselves in the fourth quarter going on a nine-point run at 4:42. For the remainder of the contest, UMass Lowell and NJIT would go basket-for-basket, but the River Hawks could not gain enough momentum to take down the Highlanders, resulting in a 52-38 outcome.

Up next, the River Hawks will return to Costello Athletic Center on Saturday, February 1 to face America East opponent, UMBC, with a tipoff scheduled for 1 p.m. The team will celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day while also raising awareness to Breast Cancer.