BALTIMORE, Md. – Sophomore Morgan Lumb finished with 11 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals to lead the University of Hartford women's basketball team in a 53-51 loss in their final road game of the season at UMBC. Lumb was one of two Hawks in double figures as classmate Deanna Mayza led all Hawks scorers with 12 points, her second straight-game leading the Hawks from the field.

Lumb's seven rebounds, four assists and two steals led Hartford in each of those categories, while her 11 point outing is her seventh double figure scoring game of the season. The four assists and the seven rebounds for the North Andover, Mass. native ties her career high in each category, while it is the second time this season she has dished out four assists against the Retrievers.

 As a team, Hartford finished the game shooting 32.1 percent from the field, 18-of-56, while making 5-of-19 attempts from beyond the three point arc (26.3 percent). All five three pointers for the Hawks came in the opening half. Hartford did capitalize at the free throw line where they made all but one of their 11 attempts for 90.9 percent.

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

·       Sophomore point guard Deanna Mayza led the Hawks in scoring for the second-straight game as she put up a dozen points on 5-of-12 from the field including a pair of three pointers. Mayza split her 12 points evenly over the two halves with all six of her second half points coming in the final four minutes as she pulled the Hawks within a single possession with 68 seconds left on a jumper that made it a 50-48 game.

·       Morgan Lumb, also a sophomore, completed one of her most well rounded games of the season as she scored 11 points, grabbed a career-high seven rebounds, dished out a career-high four assists and pulled away a pair of steals, leading the Hawks in the final three of those categories.

·       Joining Lumb in leading the Hawks in rebounds and assists was junior Christie Michals who also grabbed seven boards and dished out three assists, setting new career-highs in each instance.

·       As a team, Hartford capitalized in their attempts from the free throw line where they missed just one of their 11 total attempts for a 90.9 percent effort. Overall for the game, Hartford shot 32.1 percent on 18-of-56 from the field, while making 5-of-19 attempts from beyond the three point arc, with all five three pointers coming in the first half.

FIRST HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·       Hartford's first seven baskets all came from different players with four of those baskets coming from beyond the three point arc. Sophomore Morgan Lumb, who returned to the starting lineup for the first time since January 25, opened the Hawks scoring with a three pointer just under 90 seconds into the action.

·       The Hawks used an 8-0 rally to take their third lead of the game with the go-ahead basket coming from senior Shanise Bultron who drained a three pointer off a feed from Lumb with 12:22 remaining before the break.

·       Hartford extended that 8-0 run to a 15-3 rally that resulted in the Hawks largest lead of the game, 23-14, with 8:35 remaining. The second half of the Hawks rally came on seven-straight points, the last of which was a three pointer from Deanna Mayza off a feed from Christie Michals. That three pointer game Mayza a team-high six points in the first half.

·       As a team, the Hawks finished the opening half shooting 35.7 percent with the majority of their success beyond the arc as they made 5-of-10 attempts from long range. Mayza would score two of the five three pointers with the remaining three coming from Lumb, Bultron and Amber Bepko.

·       The Hawks also capitalized on the Retrievers 12 turnovers in the first half as they outscored UMBC 10-3 on points off turnovers. Hartford also had a 3-0 advantage in fast break points with those three points on Bepko's three pointer as she spotted up after a take-a-way at center court.

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·       The Hawks looked to make a charge within the first four minutes of the second half when Amber Bepko and Morgan Lumb put up back-to-back baskets that pulled the Hawks within four, 33-29, with 16:43 remaining in the game.

·       It wasn't until the final four minutes that Hartford cut the UMBC lead down to single digits thanks to Deanna Mayza who scored six points in the final four minutes. The first four of those points came uncontested by the Retrievers as she pulled Hartford within two, 48-46, with just over two minutes remaining. Her final basket in that stretch matched one for the Retrievers again pulling the Hawks within a pair, 50-48.

·       After the Retrievers missed the front end of a one-and-one opportunity with just over four seconds remaining in regulation, Mayza took the outlet pass and drove to center court where a last ditch effort from the point guard was off the mark, closing out the contest in favor of UMBC, 53-51.

·       Freshman Darby Lee led the Hawks scoring efforts in the final half as she scored seven of her nine total points in the game over the final 20 minutes. In the second half, Lee finished 2-of-4 from the field and 3-of-4 at the free throw line.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

·       Sophomore Morgan Lumb scored in double figures for the seventh time this season, while this is the second game of the season she has led the team in scoring. Her first time leading the team in points came at the Fordham Tournament against Princeton with 14.

·       Point guard Deanna Mayza led Hartford's offense with 12 points, the second-straight game she has led the team in scoring and her seventh time overall leading the team. She has also scored in double figures in 15 games in 2014-15.

·       Lumb and junior forward Christie Michals both set career-highs in rebounds and assists against the Retrievers. Both pulled down seven rebounds on Sunday with Michals' setting a new career best and Lumb's tying her career-high set last month against Binghamton. Lumb led the team with four assists, the same she dished out against UMBC earlier this season, both of which tied her career-high. Michals finished with three assists which surpasses her previous career high of two.

TWEETABLES (140 characters or less)

·       SO Morgan Lumb finished an all-around game with 11 points, career-high 7 rebounds, career-high 4 assists, and 2 steals.

·       SO point guard Deanna Mayza led the Hawks in scoring for the second-straight game, netting 12 points against the Retrievers.

·       JR forward Christie Michaels also set a pair of career high in rebounds (7) and assists (3) on Sunday.

UP NEXT
The Hawks return to the Chase Family Arena to close out the regular season with back-to-back home games. First on the schedule will be a visit from the Albany Great Danes on Thursday, February 26. The Hawks and Great Danes are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip off in a game that will air live on ESPN3.