Henrico, Va. – Despite erasing a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter, the Duquesne women's basketball team fell to top-seeded Richmond, 63-58 in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Championships inside the Henrico Sports and Events Center on Friday morning. With the loss, the Dukes dropped to 19-12 this season.

POINT OF EMPHASIS
The Spiders' lead grew to 10 points after Ally Sweeney's layup to start the fourth quarter. However, freshman Mackenzie Blackford and junior Andjela Matic responded with back-to-back three-pointers, cutting the deficit to four (51-47) with 7:13 left in regulation. Richmond's Alyssa Jimenez answered with a three of her own, but senior Kiandra Browne's layup and a fortunate bounce on a three-pointer from freshman Faith Walker brought the Dukes within two (54-52) with just over five minutes remaining. Coming out of the media timeout, the Dukes forced a Richmond turnover, leading to consecutive layups from Browne and Matic that put them ahead 56-54. After a quick 30-second timeout, Jimenez drained a left-corner three to reclaim the lead for the Spiders, who then extended their advantage to three with 1:30 remaining. Browne responded with another basket, but Sweeney pushed Richmond's lead back to three with 57 seconds on the clock. An offensive rebound by Walker gave the Dukes another opportunity with under 40 seconds remaining, but Browne's three-point attempt fell short with 20 seconds left. Richmond then went 2-of-4 from the free-throw line in the closing seconds to secure the win.

QUOTABLE
"I'm incredibly disappointed that the game ended in that fashion," head coach Dan Burt said. "We had kids that played their absolute heart out and Richmond is a great basketball team. They're an elite level basketball team and today we matched them. We brought a roster in that had six of our 12 players being freshmen, and the leadership that Gabby Hutcherson, Kiandra Browne and Megan McConnell exhibited will profoundly affect our program, not just for this season and hopefully what postseason has to offer but for years to come."

BACK-AND-FORTH
It was a back-and-forth affair to begin the contest as both teams traded the opening eight points. The Spiders would string together eight consecutive points to take an 18-8 lead into the first media timeout. Out of the break, freshman Mackenzie Blackford stemmed the tide by connecting on a pair of triples to cut the deficit to two with just under two-minutes remaining. After a minute scoring drought, Richmond tallied a pair of free-throws to take an 18-14 lead after one. The fast up-tempo and trading baskets continued to begin the second quarter as the Spiders held a 26-23 advantage with 6:19 to play. Both teams went scoreless for over two minutes before a free-throw from senior Megan McConnell and a triple from sophomore Reina Green cur the deficit to 28-27. Richmond ended the half with three straight points to take a 31-27 lead into the break.

STEPPING UP
Senior Kiandra Browne and freshman Mackenzie Blackford led the way for the Dukes on Friday, both finishing in double figures. Browne recorded a career-high 18 points on an efficient 9-of-15 shooting (60.0 percent) while also grabbing a team-best seven rebounds. She did most of her damage in the third quarter, scoring eight points on 4-of-6 shooting. Blackford added 14 points on an impressive 5-of-7 shooting (71.4 percent), including a strong performance from beyond the arc, where she went 4-of-6 (66.7 percent). The freshman was nearly flawless in the first half, shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and 3-of-3 from deep.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Junior Jerni Kiaku contributed eight points, while classmate Andjela Matic added seven points, five rebounds, and two assists. Senior Megan McConnell made an all-around impact, tallying five points, six rebounds, four steals, and three assists. Freshman Faith Walker played a career-high 34 minutes, finishing with three points, three rebounds, and two assists. She played a key role defensively, tasked with guarding Richmond's top trio of Addie Budnik, Maggie Doogan, and Rachel Ullstrom. The Spiders had three players score in double figures, led by Budnik with 15 points and five rebounds. Doogan added 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three blocks. Duquesne held a slight edge in the paint, outscoring Richmond 32-28, while also dominating in bench production with a 20-12 advantage

UP NEXT
Duquesne waits for selection Sunday where it looks to earn a bid into a postseason tournament. More information to follow.