PITTSBURGH – The Duquesne women's basketball team fell to the Massachusetts Minutewomen on Sunday afternoon, 83-61, at the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
 
Duquesne falls to 14-8 (4-5 A-10) while UMass improves to 17-4 (7-1 A-10).
 
UMass made its first seven shots of the game, putting Duquesne behind early in this one. The 20-5 deficit at 5:28 in the first quarter was too much to overcome, and by halftime, UMass led by 24 points.
 
Junior guard Amaya Hamilton led the Dukes with 15 points on 7-for-14 shooting while grabbing five rebounds. Sophomore Megan McConnell scored nine points, dished out a team-high four assists and grabbed eight rebounds.
 
Junior forward Ayanna Townsend was the only other Duke in double digits, as she scored 11 points. She was 5-for-7 from the free throw line and grabbed four offensive rebounds.
 
After the blitz by UMass in the first quarter, Duquesne was outscored by only one points the rest of the way.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
The Minutewomen came out shooting in the first, starting 5-for-5 from the field and 4-for-4 from three-point range. A little over two minutes into the game, they already led 14-4. UMass made its next two shots, then finally missed one. The visitors began the game shooting 7-for-8.
 
The Minutewomen's scoring pace slowed, but they were still able to put up plenty of points. The Dukes were shooting 50 percent after one quarter, but they trailed by 21.
 
UMass outscored Duquesne 9-4 early in the second quarter to extend its lead, and the Dukes' deficit climbed to 27 points with 4:52 left in the half.
 
Despite the score, the Dukes showed plenty of fight. Hamilton made two-straight tough shots and McConnell followed those with a steal at half court. A three-ball by junior center Precious Johnson ended the half and Duquesne trailed, 49-25.
 
Duquesne played much better out of the locker room, outscoring UMass 12-9 in the first few minutes of the second half. Unfortunately, every shot made by Duquesne was matched with a shot made by UMass. At the end of three quarters, UMass led 70-40.
 
The fourth quarter began with a 7-0 run by the Dukes, but it still only put a small dent into the UMass lead. Hamilton and Townsend kept doing their best to chip away though, as both of them hit double digit point totals.
 
Still, despite outscoring the Minutewomen by eight in the final quarter, Duquesne fell in this one. The final score was 83-61.


GAME NOTES

• Today was Hamilton's 13^th game this season with 10 or more points.
• Today was Townsend's 12^th game this season with 10 or more points.
• Myers made two three-pointers tonight, giving her multiple threes in 19 out of 22 games this season.

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