Lowell, MA- The Lady Falcons had their toughest test of the season tonight, as they squared off against the NCAA Division I UMass-Lowell Riverhawks (1-1).  The team hung tough, but they were unable to come up with a sixth straight victory as they fell 79-45.

For the first four minutes Fisher kept pace with the Riverhawks, trailing just 6-5 after a Piper Mali (Oro Valley, AZ) jumper.  But UML ended the first quarter with an 11-2 run to take the lead 18-7 after the first ten minutes of play.  Coming out of the break the Riverhawks stayed hot and went on another 10-0 run to put the home team up 28-9 halfway through the second quarter.  The Falcons responded with an 8-5 of their own, capped off by a Shaniah Hazard (Providence, RI) three-pointer to bring the score to 33-15 with three minutes left before halftime. The two teams would exchange baskets the last three minutes and would head to the locker room with the Riverhawks leading 41-20.  

Fisher came out of the break with a spark as the Falcons went on a 10-2 run to start the third and get them back to within 15 at 54-39.  Unfortunately that was the closest the Falcons would get the rest of the way, despite outscoring UML in the paint 10-4, out-rebounding them 7-5, and causing seven UML turnovers in the third quarter.  The Riverhawks would close it out in the fourth, outscoring the Falcons 18-6.  Overall, UML shot well for the night going 31 for 62 for a 50% shooting percentage, proving to be the difference.

Vivian Lara (Norwalk, CA) led all scorers with 21 points while adding five rebounds and two three-pointers.  Jenny-Lynn Eggers (Sonoma, CA) and Kellie Gaston (Tampa, FL) each contributed eight points a piece for the visitors, with Eggers grabbing seven rebounds.  Hazard played well for Coach Jesse Ford off the bench as she collected seven rebounds of her own and added six points.

The Falcons will look to get back to their winning ways next Tuesday as they take on the Rivier University Raiders at home on the Fecteau-Leary court in Lynn, MA.