UMBC

Baltimore, Md. – The UMBC Retrievers (0-11, 0-2 AEC) head to Boston, Mass., for two America East Conference women’s basketball games.  The Retrievers take on Boston University on Thursday, Jan. 15 at 7 p.m. and will play Northeastern on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 1 p.m.

RETRIEVER UPDATE:  The Retrievers took Hartford to the brink last Saturday, trailing by four points with 36 seconds to play when Sharri Rohde got called for a foul in the Retrievers inbounding play, giving the ball back to the Hawks.  The Hawks connected on 5-of-6 free throws in the remaining seconds of the game to take a 55-46 win at home. UMBC received 16 points from Mariana Santos in the win as Santos, who came off the bench for the Retrievers to score a career high, hit 7-of-7 free throws to bring her season free throw total to 25-of-26 (96.2 percent).  Anastasia Goncharova, who was coming off an 18-point performance against Stony Brook, chipped in 11 points as her conference average through two games is at 14.5 ppg, shooting 50.0 percent from the field on 11-of-22 shooting.   

TERRIER UPDATE: The Boston University Terriers are off to a slow start in conference play after winning the league tournament last year and representing the conference in the NCAA Tournament.  Boston U. opened their conference slate with a loss to Hartford, 69-60, followed by a loss at Binghamton, 74-65.  Three of the Terriers’ five wins this season have come against former league foes of the Retrievers as the Terriers have knocked off Central Connecticut State, Wagner and Fairleigh Dickinson from the Northeast Conference, teams UMBC went a combined 2-2 against last year.  The Terriers are led by Katie Terhune with 14.7 ppg and Becky Bonner at 14.1 ppg.          

Who’s Up Next:  The Retrievers swing through Boston, Mass., concludes against Northeastern on Jan. 17 at 1 p.m.  It will be the first meeting of the two squads.

All-time Series vs. Boston University:  Boston University is one of two teams in the America East that the Retrievers have met prior to their inception into the league this year.  The Retrievers and Terriers met in 1991-92 at the LaSalle Tournament with the Terriers defeating UMBC, 76-64. 

Retrievers In The Midst Of Three-Game Road Trip...The UMBC Retrievers are in the midst of a three-game road trip that had them playing at Hartford last Saturday, falling to the Hawks, 55-46, and taking on Boston U. and Northeastern this week.  The Retrievers went 2-1 last season when playing three consecutive road conference games.

Match-up Has Three-Point Flavor...The match-up between UMBC and Boston University has a three-point flavor to it as both teams like to shoot from behind the Arc.  With both teams tied at the top of the league charts with an average of 6.64 three-point baskets per game, the Retrievers and Terriers game could be decided by who shoots the ball better from down town.  Boston leads the conference in three-point percentage at .376 while UMBC is shooting the ball form outside the arc at .290.  Boston’s Becky Bonnor is shooting a conference best 42.9 percent from three-point range, averaging 2.73 three-points baskets per game.  Anastasia Goncharova shoots the three-point shot best for UMBC making 2.27 per game.     

First Time Against Boston U. Holds Meaning...In the only meeting between UMBC and Boston U., the Retrievers lost 76-64 in the opening round of the LaSalle Tournament.  That Retrievers loss marked their eighth straight loss to open the season, the Retrievers longest streak until their 11 game drought to open this year.  Following that hard fought loss to the Terriers, the Retrievers went on to win nine of their next 14 games and salvage their season by finishing 10-18 with a loss in the East Coast Conference Tournament first round. 

Goncharova Responding After Subpar Nights...When Retrievers' junior Anastasia Goncharova goes it seems like the Retrievers' offense goes as Goncharova has responded well in games preceding a subpar offensive output.  Goncharova scored a team-high 18 points against Stony Brook after being held scoreless against Loyola in the previous contest.  Goncharova's 18-point performance was not the first time she has responded well as she strung together three-straight double-figure performances including 18 points vs. North Carolina after recording three points in the season opener vs. Penn.  Goncharova had another big night against Radford with 16 points after being held to six against Maryland.  Goncharova leads the team with seven games scoring in double figures.

Rookies Tally Career Nights...The combination of Sharri Rohde and Courtney Doughman produced 29 points as each player recorded a career night against the Loyola Greyhounds.  Rohde hit 5-of-9 shots from the field and 3-of-6 three-pointers en route to a game-high 17 points.  Rohde was 4-of-4 from the charity stripe and also recorded a block, two steals and four assists.  Doughman produced off the bench draining four treys to bolster the UMBC offense with 12 points in the game.  

Rhode Hitting The Boards...Freshman Sharri Rohde is emerging on the inside for the Retrievers as the rookie forward recorded her first double-digit night on the boards with 10 rebounds against Radford.  Rohde also rejected two shots in the game as she has seven blocks on the year and five in course of three games.  Over the past three games Rohde is averaging 9.0 points. 

Retrievers Scoring On The Rise...After averaging 39.4 ppg in the first seven contests, the Retrievers’ scoring has started to rise over the last three games, averaging 50.25 points per game.  UMBC scored 56 against Radford, scored 50 against Loyola, 49 versus Stony Brook and 46 in their latest outing against Hartford.   

Retrievers’ Bench Adds Spark...The Retrievers have been getting some help from its reserves as of late, averaging 14.67 points off the bench in its last six games.  In the Retrievers last outing against Hartford, Mariana Santos came off the bench to tally 16 points, a team-high.  In the previous two games before Radford the UMBC bench scored 19 points in each of the contests.  In the Retrievers game against Loyola, freshman Courtney Doughman hit four treys for a career-high 12 points and classmate Brittnie Hughes scored her first collegiate points with four points in the game.      

Rookies Coming To Play…The freshman class this season has put together solid numbers for the Retrievers in their debut, averaging 33.3 percent of the Retriever total scoring.  Sharri Rohde, who leads the team in rebounding average at 5.7 rpg, is averaging a team third best 6.3 ppg, including a 17-point night against Loyola.  Heather Luttrell posted a team game-high 11 points in the opener and Courtney Doughman had a career-high night with 12 points off the bench with four treys against Loyola.  Brittnie Hughes, after opening the season with an injury, saw her first action against Radford and netted her first collegiate points against Loyola with four points.   

Santos Cashing In At Charity Stripe...Mariana Santos has been spectacular at the free throw line this season, hitting 25-of-26 attempts for a 96.2 free throw percentage.  Against Hartford, Santos was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line as she scored 16 points off the bench for the Retrievers.  Santos needs five made free throws in the Retrievers next game to meet the criteria of 2.5 free throws made per game to rank in the America East statistics. 

Getting The Nod…Head Coach Phil Stern has started freshman Sharri Rohde in all of the team’s games thus far, making her and teammate Maria Brown the only two to start every game.  Fellow freshman Heather Luttrell broke into the starting lineup for the first time at UNC and against Maryland Courtney Doughman got the start as three rookies opened the game on the floor for UMBC.  Doughman has started the past two games for the Retrievers while Luttrell has come off the bench since her last start against Maryland.   

Keep Me In Coach...Head coach Phil Stern has stuck with some of his players for all 40 minutes on seven occasions this season.  In the Retrievers’ conference game against Hartford, Anastasia Goncharova played all 40 minutes scoring 11 points.  Goncharova also has logged 40 minutes on two other occasions, scoring 10 points against Navy and 16 at Radford.  In the Retrievers outing versus Loyola, freshman standout Sharri Rohde went all 40 minutes on the floor, scoring 17 points.  Mariana Santos has played all 40 minutes in two games and played 42 of 45 minutes in the overtime game against Radford.

From Down Town…The Retrievers continued their season-long commitment to the three, going 6-of-18 against Hartford.  The Retrievers this season have taken 20-plus shots from outside the arc on eight occasions.  Anastasia Goncharova has the Retrievers’ most three-point buckets with 25 on the year.  Goncharova scored a game-high 18 points in the loss to No. 13 North Carolina.  Goncharova hit six treys in the game.  Goncharova buried four more three-pointers against Stony Brook to lead the Retrievers in scoring with 18 points in that game.  As a team the Retrievers are shooting 29.0 percent from three-point range. 

Hitting The Airwaves…UMBC will be featured on the airwaves a couple times this season.  The Retrievers made a TV appearance on Saturday, Jan. 10 when they played Hartford at 12 p.m. on Comcast Sportsnet.  WJFK-AM, THE JOCK will broadcast the first end of a men and women's doubleheader on Wed., Feb. 4 as veteran broadcasters Gary Stein and Paul Mittermeier will handle the play-by-play and analyst duties respectively.  The Retrievers women's hoops can also be caught on Teamline on six different occasions.  Teamline can be accessed through the basketball home page and is a free service provided by UMBC Athletics. 

Stern Carries Color Commentary...Head coach Phil Stern carried the color commentary at the UMBC men’s basketball game against Princeton University back on Dec. 2 at UMBC RAC Arena.  Stern joined play-by-play man Gary Stein on the airwaves.   Stern is a master of the famed Princeton-style offense and gave substantial in depth insight into the system of play during WJFK’s broadcast. 

Retrievers In The America East Charts...Freshman Sharri Rohde’s rebounding has her listed in conference charts, ranking ninth in defensive rebounds with 4.82 per game and 12th in overall rebounding at 5.7 per game.  Rohde ranks ninth in blocks with .64 per game.  Anastasia Goncharova ranks third in three-point percentage at .294 and third in three-point field goals made at 2.27 per game.  Goncharova also ranks 18th in scoring at 10.4 ppg. 

Brown Snags Career-High...Sophomore guard Maria Brown stole a career-high six balls versus American earlier this season.  Brown’s six steals were a part of her big defensive effort as she rejected two shots as well.  Brown has six blocks on the season and leads the team with 13 steals.

No Charity Allowed...In the latest NCAA statistics release (games thru Jan. 5), UMBC ranked third in the country in fouls per game at 11.7.  UMBC currently is averaging 12.3 fouls per game.  UMBC finished fifth in the nation last year in fouls per game at 13.5. 

Phil Stern Era Moves Into Second Season…Head coach Phil Stern has begun the second season in his tenure at the helm of the Retriever women's hoops program.  Stern in his first season took the Retrievers to the conference title game for the first-time ever and posted a 14-16 record.  Stern, known to revitalize struggling programs, continues to build for the future, bringing in six newcomers this year and signing three to National Letters of Intent for the 2004-05 campaign. 

Retrievers New Beast In The America East…The Retrievers will make their first appearance in the America East this season as UMBC moves into the conference with all its 20-intercollegiate sports.  Prior to this year, UMBC spent five seasons in the Northeast Conference and six in the Big South Conference.  At the end of last season, the America East had a Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) of 23 compared to 31 held by the NEC (second lowest).  The America East’s current RPI for this season is 17 in the country.

Starting From Scratch…With the departure of all-five starters from last year's squad, Phil Stern will be looking for players to step up into the starting role this year.  Out of the six returning players, the Retrievers have a total of 26 starts combined prior to the start of the 2003-04 campaign, an average of 4.33 starts per player.  Matea Pender returns with the most total starts after earning the nod in 18 games her freshman year in 2001-02 before sitting out last season with a knee injury.  Anastasia Goncharova has the most starts under head coach Phil Stern with four last year in 27 games played.  

Going Global…The Retrievers' 10-player roster contains three international players.  The team's lone senior Mariana Santos is from Brazil while sophomore Matea Pender is a native of Croatia and junior Anastasia Goncharova is from Russia.  In addition to players from the around the world, the majority of UMBC's squad is from outside the state lines.  Maria Brown (Frederick, Md.) and Tyecia Powell (Baltimore, Md.) are the Retrievers' women's hoops only Maryland natives.

UMBC Picked 10th in Preseason Conference Poll…UMBC was picked to finish in last place in the preseason conference polled release by the America East Conference.  Maine was a unanimous pick for the top spot receiving nine first place votes.  Boston University was selected second followed by Vermont.  UMBC, who is entering their first season in the AEC, did not place anyone on the preseason all-conference team.

Retrievers Ink Three For 2004-05…UMBC head women's basketball coach Phil Stern announced the signings of three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to attend UMBC for the 2004-05 academic year.  The list includes Indiana natives Kristin Drabyn (Avon, Ind./Avon) and Jennifer Ferguson (Fremont, Ind./Fremont) along with local talent Morgan Hatten (Potomac, Md./Winston Churchill).

Two Players Depart From Team...The UMBC women’s basketball team announced they have honored the request of student-athletes Betsy Butterick and Katie Tedder to be released from all responsibilities relating to the women’s basketball program effective immediately.  Both players have decided to withdraw from school.