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| Brandi Henton (#20) led all players with 27 points |
From our friends at UDC Athletics...
Firebirds Suffer First League Loss vs. Roberts Wesleyan, 72-64
The University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team was defeated by Roberts Wesleyan College, 72-64 in East Coast Conference play Sunday afternoon in our nation's capital.
The Firebirds' 13-game win streak and 24-game regular season conference win streak came to a halt with today's loss as UDC fell to 15-4 overall and 10-1 in league play. The Redhawks, meanwhile, avenged a 97-90 triple-overtime loss to UDC on their home floor back on December 11th as they won for the third time in their last four outings and improved to 16-3 overall and 8-3 in the ECC.
Junior transfer reserve guard Brandi Henton powered the Firebirds offensively with a game-high 27 points on 10-of-15 FG shooting (4-of-7 from 3FG) and 3-of-4 from the foul line. Her backcourt counterpart, senior guard Tajruba Baldwin-Kollore, added 16 points and a game-high five assists. Senior forward Tatyana Calhoun had game-highs of 11 rebounds and three steals.
UDC was out-shot 44-percent to 37-percent from the field, but suffered more from a giant free-throw disparity as the Redhawks sunk 23-of-27 (85-percent) at the line while UDC made just 12-of-18 (67-percent). RWC also had a 36-31 rebounding edge, 8-0 advantage in second chance points, and outscored UDC 24-16 in the paint.
Four of the Redhawks' starting five scored in double-figures, including a team-high 19 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots by Samantha Courtney. The 6-foot-3 senior forward was 7-of-8 from the field and 5-of-6 at the foul line, but played only 20 minutes due to foul trouble.
Guards Brooke Fields and Necedah James added 17 and 14 points, respectively, forward Taylor Bynoe pitched in 10 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals, and forward Lucy Covley hauled in a team-best 10 rebounds in 40 minutes of work.
Fields scored the game's first four points on a layup and a pair of free-throws as RWC raced out to leads of 4-0 and later, 6-2. Senior forward Arielle Ward knocked down a three-pointer at the 7:28 mark to make it 6-5, but the Redhawks extended their lead to 11-5 with a 5-0 spurt culminating in a Bynoe layup.
UDC closed to 11-9 with back-to-back buckets by Calhoun and senior forward Iman Scott, but Roberts pushed the lead back up to seven, 19-12 after consecutive three-pointers by Cydney Goodrum and Fields completed an 8-3 run by the Redhawks. A pair of free-throws by Baldwin-Kollore made it 19-14 at the end of the first quarter.
The visitors out-scored UDC 6-2 over the first minute-and-a-half of the 2nd quarter, but then Henton led a 5-0 UDC charge as she first knocked down a three-pointer and later grabbed a defensive rebound to go coast-to-coast for a layup. Her five straight points helped pull the Firebirds back within four, 25-21, at the 7:16 mark.
Almost two minutes later, Covley buried a three-pointer to spark an 8-2 Redhawks run, and RWC extended its lead to double-digits, 33-23 after a pair of free-throws by Necedah. Henton would knock down two more three-pointers in the final 3:30 as UDC closed the half on an 8-4 run and trailed by only six at intermission, 37-31.
The Firebirds carried that momentum into the start of the 3rd quarter as they opened on a 6-0 run and forced the game's first tie, 37-all after another Henton three-pointer at the 5:38 mark. Necedah and UDC senior forward Jenka Stiasna then traded three-pointers before Calhoun gave the Firebirds their first lead of the day, 42-40 with a layup off of a pretty feed from Henton.
UDC led 45-42 after a three-pointer by Baldwin-Kollore at 3:44, but a 6-0 run finishing with a Fields three-pointer at 2:48, gave RWC the lead back, 48-45. The Firebirds answered once more with a 7-0 run, as senior forward Tiara Goode joined the three-point shooting parade with a triple at the 39-second mark to give UDC what would be its largest lead of the game, 52-48. Fields then made a three-pointer to bring the Redhawks within one, 52-51 as both teams headed to their respective benches before the start of the 4th quarter.
The Redhawks would open the 4th quarter on a 7-2 run, claiming a 58-54 lead on a layup by Courtney at the 7:12 mark. Once again Henton led the Firebird charge as they responded with an 8-0 run. Henton scored five points during the nearly four-minute stretch, and UDC pulled ahead 62-58 at the 3:36 mark after a 1-of-2 trip at the line by Calhoun.
The Firebirds, however, were shut out for the next 3:33 as they shot 0-for-5 and turned the ball over twice in that stretch. Meanwhile, RWC scored on four straight possessions in a span of 2:17, and the Redhawks took a 66-62 lead heading into the final minute of regulation. Roberts went on to make 6-of-6 at the foul line in that final minute and went on to win by a comfortable eight-point margin.
UDC, which had not lost a regular season conference game since January 10th, 2015, will look to bounce back on Thursday, February 4th as the Firebirds visit league foe Queens College.
Click here for today's box score.
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| Taj Baldwin-Kollore (#22, game-high 5 assists) draws a crowd |
Junior transfer reserve guard Brandi Henton powered the Firebirds offensively with a game-high 27 points on 10-of-15 FG shooting (4-of-7 from 3FG) and 3-of-4 from the foul line. Her backcourt counterpart, senior guard Tajruba Baldwin-Kollore, added 16 points and a game-high five assists. Senior forward Tatyana Calhoun had game-highs of 11 rebounds and three steals.
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| Tatyana Calhoun (#32) led all players with 11 rebounds & 3 steals |
UDC was out-shot 44-percent to 37-percent from the field, but suffered more from a giant free-throw disparity as the Redhawks sunk 23-of-27 (85-percent) at the line while UDC made just 12-of-18 (67-percent). RWC also had a 36-31 rebounding edge, 8-0 advantage in second chance points, and outscored UDC 24-16 in the paint.
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| Tiara Goode (#14) added 5 points and 2 rebounds |
Four of the Redhawks' starting five scored in double-figures, including a team-high 19 points, six rebounds and two blocked shots by Samantha Courtney. The 6-foot-3 senior forward was 7-of-8 from the field and 5-of-6 at the foul line, but played only 20 minutes due to foul trouble.
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| Samantha Courtney (#14) led the Redhawks with 19 points & 2 blocks |
Guards Brooke Fields and Necedah James added 17 and 14 points, respectively, forward Taylor Bynoe pitched in 10 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals, and forward Lucy Covley hauled in a team-best 10 rebounds in 40 minutes of work.
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| Lucy Covley (#21) led Roberts Wesleyan with 10 rebounds |
Fields scored the game's first four points on a layup and a pair of free-throws as RWC raced out to leads of 4-0 and later, 6-2. Senior forward Arielle Ward knocked down a three-pointer at the 7:28 mark to make it 6-5, but the Redhawks extended their lead to 11-5 with a 5-0 spurt culminating in a Bynoe layup.
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| Head Coach DeWayne Burroughs rallies the troops |
UDC closed to 11-9 with back-to-back buckets by Calhoun and senior forward Iman Scott, but Roberts pushed the lead back up to seven, 19-12 after consecutive three-pointers by Cydney Goodrum and Fields completed an 8-3 run by the Redhawks. A pair of free-throws by Baldwin-Kollore made it 19-14 at the end of the first quarter.
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| UDC's Iman Scott battles Cydney Goodrum (#3) |
The visitors out-scored UDC 6-2 over the first minute-and-a-half of the 2nd quarter, but then Henton led a 5-0 UDC charge as she first knocked down a three-pointer and later grabbed a defensive rebound to go coast-to-coast for a layup. Her five straight points helped pull the Firebirds back within four, 25-21, at the 7:16 mark.
Almost two minutes later, Covley buried a three-pointer to spark an 8-2 Redhawks run, and RWC extended its lead to double-digits, 33-23 after a pair of free-throws by Necedah. Henton would knock down two more three-pointers in the final 3:30 as UDC closed the half on an 8-4 run and trailed by only six at intermission, 37-31.
The Firebirds carried that momentum into the start of the 3rd quarter as they opened on a 6-0 run and forced the game's first tie, 37-all after another Henton three-pointer at the 5:38 mark. Necedah and UDC senior forward Jenka Stiasna then traded three-pointers before Calhoun gave the Firebirds their first lead of the day, 42-40 with a layup off of a pretty feed from Henton.
UDC led 45-42 after a three-pointer by Baldwin-Kollore at 3:44, but a 6-0 run finishing with a Fields three-pointer at 2:48, gave RWC the lead back, 48-45. The Firebirds answered once more with a 7-0 run, as senior forward Tiara Goode joined the three-point shooting parade with a triple at the 39-second mark to give UDC what would be its largest lead of the game, 52-48. Fields then made a three-pointer to bring the Redhawks within one, 52-51 as both teams headed to their respective benches before the start of the 4th quarter.
The Redhawks would open the 4th quarter on a 7-2 run, claiming a 58-54 lead on a layup by Courtney at the 7:12 mark. Once again Henton led the Firebird charge as they responded with an 8-0 run. Henton scored five points during the nearly four-minute stretch, and UDC pulled ahead 62-58 at the 3:36 mark after a 1-of-2 trip at the line by Calhoun.
The Firebirds, however, were shut out for the next 3:33 as they shot 0-for-5 and turned the ball over twice in that stretch. Meanwhile, RWC scored on four straight possessions in a span of 2:17, and the Redhawks took a 66-62 lead heading into the final minute of regulation. Roberts went on to make 6-of-6 at the foul line in that final minute and went on to win by a comfortable eight-point margin.
UDC, which had not lost a regular season conference game since January 10th, 2015, will look to bounce back on Thursday, February 4th as the Firebirds visit league foe Queens College.
Click here for today's box score.
