Rider junior guard Cintella Spotwood heaved up a shot from the midcourt line as the final second waned off the clock in the first half. The ball bounded off the backboard and right into the net, giving the Broncs a 31-21 lead over Penn going into halftime.
The Quakers never managed to catch up in the second half and went on to lose their eighth straight game of the season, 66-53, at the Palestra Saturday afternoon.
Penn (0-8) shot 32.1 percent from the field in the game, including only 3-for-19 from beyond the arc, continuing an eight-game slide that has seen them lose by an average of 16.5 points per game.
“We’re fighting to the end, we’re just coming up short a lot,” Penn coach Mike McLaughlin said. “I just keep telling them, ‘We’re out there to pick each other up and go on and get better as a program.’”
Quaker junior guard Kim Adams shared his sentiments. “We’re all definitely a little disappointed,” she said. “I think throughout the whole week the spirits were really high to come out here and get a victory before heading into break.”
Adams led the team with 19 points on the game, 17 of them in an impressive second half. She and junior center Caroline Nicholson led Penn in rebounds with six each.
For the Broncs (2-7), it was Spotwood and guard Amanda Sepulveda leading the way with 17 and 12 points respectively. Spotwood played all 40 minutes of the game, and with nine rebounds, was only one away from her first double-double of the season.
Of the 11 shots Rider made in the first half, seven were three-pointers. In the second half, they moved away from the perimeter game, going 0-for-5 from downtown.
The Broncs had entered the game on a five-game losing streak of their own.
Despite the loss, the Quakers have kept their spirits high in the face of a winless season.
“One thing we’ve done really well so far is staying together as a unit,” Adams said. “The coaching staff and the captains have done a great job in trying to keep everyone positive.”
“I think that’s really important because in times like these, a team can start pointing fingers and making excuses, but we haven’t done that,” she added.
The Quakers have until December 29th to dwell on their latest loss, when they’ll face Mount St. Mary’s at the Palestra.
“We’ve got a couple weeks off here for us to get better as a team,” McLaughlin said in regards to the break. “As a unit we all can get better, and that’s what we’re going to strive for.”
Last year, Penn entered winter break with a 2-7 record and went a more respectable 7-12 afterward. This year’s squad can only hope for a similar story.
“It’ll be a good break to get our heads back together and also improve as a basketball team.” Adams remarked.
