UMBC

Kristin Drabyn in one of three Retrievers from the state of Indiana

Baltimore, Md. - UMBC heads to Indiana for two road games this week as the Retrievers travel to the home state of three active players on the UMBC roster.  Sharri Rohde, Heather Luttrell and Kristin Drabyn are all natives of the Hoosier state.  UMBC begins play with IPFW on Tuesday at 7 p.m. followed by Butler on Thursday at 7 p.m. 

RETRIEVER UPDATE:   UMBC’s four-game win streak was snapped with a 65-58 loss to Drexel its last time out.  UMBC is at 6-2 on the season start three players with double-figures.  Matea Pender leads the Retrievers with 15.0 ppg.  Over the last two games Pender is averaging 19.5 ppg, scoring 22 against Lafayette and 17 against Drexel.  The last time out Pender was 5-of-5 from outside the arc until taking a desperation three with eight seconds left that fell short.  Brittnie Hughes ranks second on the team with 12.8 ppg.  Hughes started the season with six consecutive double-digit performances and recorded nine points versus Drexel.  Amanda Robinson tallied a season-high 18 points against Drexel last week and is averaging 10.5 ppg.   

IPFW UPDATE: IPFW enters the game with a 1-6 record and is looking to snap a four game losing streak.  The Mastodon’s feature a trio in Johnna Lewis-Carlisle, Julian Huhne and Ashley Johnson, all of which are averaging double figures.  Johnson is coming off a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds while Lewis-Carlisle scored a team-high 12 points in a loss to Xavier.  Lewis-Carlisle leads the team with 13.3 ppg.  Huhne is averaging 11.0 ppg and Johnson with 10.0 ppg.  Lewis-Carlisle has long distance range, shooting 43.7 percent with 17 treys from outside the arc. 

Who’s Up Next:  UMBC continues play in Indiana with Butler University at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 22.   

RETRIEVER GAMEDAY

Game Notes:  UMBC against IPFW is the Retrievers ninth game of the season and fourth on the road.  UMBC lost for the second time this season in its last outing while IPFW is looking to snap a four-game losing streak.  IPFW is UMBC’s second opponent this season to be an independent program.  UMBC’s other opponent was Longwood, who the Retrievers defeated 71-51 on Dec. 3.  The game marks the first meeting between the two programs and features two power shooters from long range.  UMBC’s Matea Pender, 15.0 ppg, is shooting 46.5 percent from outside the arc and has drained 20 treys this season.  IPFW’s Johnna Lewis-Carlisle, 13.3 ppg, is shooting 43.7 percent with 17 treys from outside the arc.

RETRIEVER QUICK SHOTS

- UMBC is finding its long range shooting as of next.  Known for its ability to shoot the trey, UMBC over the last two games has set season-high marks in three-point field goal percentage.  UMBC shot 42.9 percent, making 9-of-21 against Lafayette on Dec. 10 and in the last time out shot 53.8 percent on 7-of-13 from the three-point arc against Drexel.  In that game Matea Pender went 5-for-6 from three-point land. 

- Matea Pender is starting to heat up after averaging 19.5 ppg over the last two games.  In those two games Pender is shooting 75.0 percent outside the arc in those two games, going 9-for-12.  Pender was 5-for-5 against Drexel until taking a desperation three with eight seconds remaining. 

- Brittnie Hughes’ entered last week ranking 11th in the nation and first in the conference in assists per game at 6.3 as of games through Dec. 12.  NCAA national statistics are released every Tuesday afternoon.   Hughes after recording one assist her last time out is averaging 5.62 apg, still first in the AE standings.   

- UMBC also in the last released NCAA statistics ranked seventh in the nation with 20.1 apg and ninth in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 33.1 percent from the field.  UMBC enters this week at 19.62 apg and holding opponents to 35.0 percent shooting from the field.  

 -  The UMBC bench, which was held to two points against Drexel for its lowest output this season,   is averaging 14.8 ppg and led by sophomore guard Morgan Hatten with 4.1 ppg. Nicole Dixon leads the UMBC bench on the boards at 3.6 rpg. 

- UMBC has been very efficient from the field to date this season with the Retrievers shooting 45.2 percent.  UMBC has yet to shoot below 40.0 percent in a game this season, including shooting 50.0 percent on 25-of-50 against American and 49.1 on 27-of-55 against Longwood in back-to-back games. 

- UMBC in the final five minutes of its eight games this season has turned over the ball a mere eight times, averaging 1.0 turnover per game in the final five minutes.  During that same span of time, UMBC has handed out 22 assists and holds a 2.8 assist to turnover ratio. 

News and Notes...

UMBC In Midst of Five Game Swing...UMBC will begin a stretch of five games on the road and eight of nine away from home with three games in a span of six days.  UMBC traveled to Drexel last Saturday and follows that with Indiana native programs IPFW and Butler.  UMBC after Christmas will play at Navy and New Hampshire before returning home on Jan. 7 against Boston U. 

Home For The Holidays...Three Retrievers will get an early Christmas break heading back to their home state of Indiana.  Juniors Sharri Rohde and Heather Luttrell along with sophomore Kristin Drabyn are all from the Hoosier state and get a chance to play in front of family and friends with UMBC’s two games in Indiana.  Rohde and Drabyn are from the Indianapolis area, where UMBC will take on Butler.   

Lending a helping hand...UMBC leads the America East Conference for the second consecutive season in assists per game and ranks seventh in the NCAA Statistics through games Dec. 12, 2005.  The Retrievers to date have recorded 19.6 apg.  UMBC has four games with 20-plus assists this season, including 26 against Fairleigh Dickinson as the Retrievers came one assist away from their single-season mark of 27, set in 1985 against Shippensburg.  Brittnie Hughes dished out a career-high 10 assists against Lafayette and is averaging 5.62 apg through eight games this season.  The junior point guard led UMBC with 99 assists on the year last season and ranked among the conference leaders in the category.

Pender Passes 700-Points Mark, Eyes All-Time Top-20 Scoring Chart...Senior Matea Pender passed the 700-career points mark versus Lafayette and is moving closer to 20th all-time in UMBC history for points scored.  Pender currently has 738 career points, needing 10 to reach UMBC’s all-time top-20 for points scored.  The last time UMBC had an active member on the top-20 scoring list was during the 2002-03 season.  Pender is currently on pace to reach 1,000 career points and become the 15th Retriever to ever break the 1,000 point plateau. 

Rohde’s Start Streak...Junior Sharri Rohde extended her streak to 64 consecutive starts and has not missed a start in her entire collegiate career, starting all 28 games as a freshman and sophomore and every one this year.

Pender Becomes Fifth Retriever To Reach 100 Treys For Her Career...Senior Matea Pender recorded five treys against Drexel to become the fifth player in UMBC history to reach 100 career three-point baskets.  Pender needs 25 treys to reach fourth on UMBC’s all-time three-point baskets made chart. 

Rohde Moving Up Assists and Blocks All-Time Charts...Junior Sharri Rohde, who is UMBC’s active leader in assists, blocks and steals, is moving up the Retrievers all-time charts in the assist and blocks category.  Rohde currently has 182 career assists, ranking 13th all-time and 48 career blocks, tied for 12th all-time.  With 146 career assists, junior Brittnie Hughes is closing in on an all-time top-10 ranking.   

Hughes Earns America East Conference Co-Player of the Week...Brittnie Hughes was named America East Conference Co-Player of the Week for the week ending Dec. 4, 2005.  Hughes led UMBC to back-to-back wins as the junior point guard averaged 18.0 ppg and 6.5 apg in two contests. Hughes opened the week at American, scoring a career-high 19 points with nine assists and a 9-of-9 performance at the free throw line.

Hughes Named To Second All-Tournament Team...When it comes to tournaments, UMBC junior point guard Brittnie Hughes has stepped up to the challenge, earning a spot on both all-tournament teams this season.  Hughes won a spot on the Retriever Tip-Off Tournament team after leading the Retrievers to the title.  At South Florida, Hughes averaged 15.5 ppg and 4.25 apg to lead the Retrievers to a 1-1 mark.  Last year Hughes was named to the 2004 Retriever Tip-Off Tournament team.   

Block Party...Amanda Robinson’s six blocks against Morgan State tied Eunice French for the most blocks recorded in a single game by a Retriever.  Robinson had three blocks in the first five minutes against Morgan State.  UMBC as a team blocked nine shots against Morgan State, Robinson’s six, Nicole Dixon recording two and Mackenzie Butler one.  UMBC on the season is averaging 3.6 bpg

Pender Named MVP Of Retriever Tip-Off Tournament....Senior Matea Pender was named Retriever Tip-Off Tournament Most Valuable Player after averaging 14.5 ppg in the two games.  Pender shot .500 from outside the arc, making 5-for-10 while shooting 47.6 percent from the field on 10-of-21.  Pender added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in the two-day event. 

Double-Double...UMBC Amanda Robinson recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against Fairleigh Dickinson.  Dating back to last season, Robinson has double-digit scoring in six of her last seven games. 

Hitting the Airwaves...UMBC will hit the airwaves with six games broadcasted live on WLG-1370 AM, all home games and some away games via www.umbcretrievers.com and a televised game against Vermont on Feb. 12 at RAC Arena.  All WLG broadcast games will also run live via the website for fans outside the broadcasting network.  UMBC will also broadcast live stats via the web for all home games at RAC Arena.

UMBC Captures Tip-Off Tournament Title...UMBC for the first time in the three-year history of the Retriever Tip-Off Tournament captured the title, defeating Morgan State, 72-50, in the opening round to advance the championship game against Fairleigh Dickinson.  UMBC went on to beat FDU, 76-58, to win the title as Matea Pender earned tournament most valuable player honors and Brittnie Hughes made the all-tournament team.   

Retrievers Picked Ninth In Preseason Conference Poll...The UMBC women’s basketball team was picked to finish ninth in the America East Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll.  Hartford was the league’s pick to win the conference after taking the league tournament title last year.  Boston U. and Maine were selected to tie for second. 

America East Tournament Returns To Hartford...For the third consecutive season the America East Conference Championships will return to Chase Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion on the campus of the University of Hartford.  Hartford has hosted the conference tournament the past two seasons, including winning the league tournament last season.   

UMBC Adds Two Non-Conference Games In 2005-06...With Northeastern having moved to the Colonial Athletic Conference, UMBC will play two less conference games and added two non-conference games to the 2005-06 schedule.  UMBC will play 16 conference games, eight home and eight away, and face 11 non-conference opponents, leading up to the America East Tournament. 

International Students...UMBC has developed a reputation for having international students on its roster, including two in 2005-06.  UMBC has graduated two international students the last two years and will graduate senior Matea Pender at the conclusion of the upcoming season. 

UMBC Inks Two for 2006-07...UMBC head women’s basketball coach Phil Stern announced the signings of two student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to attend UMBC for the 2006-07 academic year.  Carlee Cassidy (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill) and Leanne Crockett (Manchester, Conn./Manchester) are both slated to become freshman at UMBC in the fall of 2006.