RICHMOND, Va. – After his freshman career Maggie Doogan, the University of Richmond women’s basketball team won a key A-10 battle, 73-58, against George Mason on Saturday night at the Robins Center. With the win, the Spiders snapped a two-game sweep to improve to 12-6 overall and 2-3 in the A-10, while the Patriots fell to 10-10 overall and 3-4 in conference play.
“I think it was crowded today,” the head coach said Aaron Roussell. “The physicality was much better in today’s game. Our team spoke volumes for what we have going for us, and the way we were able to get a double-digit win over a team that shot the ball very well speaks volumes for our team.”
Doogan, with back-to-back double-doubles and his first career start, led the team with a career-high 18 points and 12 rebounds to go along with three blocks and an assist. She also recorded a career-high five field goals, a career-high two three-pointers, a career-high six free throws and a career-high three blocks. Junior Addie Budnik scored 14 points with 4 of 8 from the field, while Jr Siobhan Ryan he was the third Spider in double figures, recording 13 points with an assist.
As a team, the Spiders shot 24-of-47 (51.1%) from the field, 7-of-18 (38.9%) from deep and 18-of-24 (75%) from the line. The team also had 45 rebounds, including seven offensive rebounds, 13 assists, three steals and nine blocks.
The Patriots shot 19 of 60 (31.7%) from the field, 6 of 24 (25%) from deep and 14 of 22 (63.6%) from the line. George Mason was led by Taylor Jameson with 16 points, while Nekhu Mitchell had a record six rebounds.
Budnik started the scoring campaign for UR, scoring a quick second chance 35 seconds into the game. Doogan followed with another layup to give UR an early 4-0 lead. Later, a huge layup by Doogan gave the Spiders a six-point lead with 4:25 left in the quarter. Graduated Emilia Krista Grava finished the first quarter with a jumper for the Spiders to give UR a 20-8 lead at the break.
Through the first 10 minutes, the Spiders were led by Doogan, who scored eight points, while four other Spiders chipped in with two points. Junior Grace Townsend down two dimes in the quarter while Doogan and Budnik each recorded a block.
In the second quarter, Hill started scoring and the Patriots went on a 4-0 run. There were 4:06 left in the half, Jr Siobhan Ryan made a huge trey thanks to the sophomore Katie Hill and then continued the game with another 3-pointer to increase the lead to 42-19 in favor of the Spiders. George Mason got the final shot with 1:02 left in the half to send the Spiders into the locker room with a 42-21 lead.
During the first half, Doogan continued to lead the Spider offense with 10 points, shooting 4 of 7 from the field, 2 of 4 from deep, and added five rebounds and two blocks. Ryan added eight points in the first 20 minutes and also dropped a dime, while Budnik and Hill each chipped in five points.
As a team, the Spiders shot 17-of-26 from the field (65.4%), 6-of-12 from deep (50%) and a perfect 2-of-2 from the free throw line. UR scored five points after eight turnovers by the Patriots, while the Spider bench also scored 10 points at halftime.
In the third quarter, UR hit five free throws from Hill and Doogan to preserve a 20-point, 47-27 lead before the Patriots began to claw back the lead to cut the deficit to 47-36 with 4:38 left. Two minutes later, Doogan recorded a hoop-and-harm to extend the Spiders’ lead to 56-42, and Budnik continued to maintain a 14-point lead, 60-47, with a pair of free throws to end the quarter.
In the final 10 minutes, the teams traded points during the first five minutes as UR preserved a 16-point lead thanks to efforts from Budnik and Ryan. After Budnik made two free throws, George Mason responded with two free throws of his own, but the Spiders walked away with a double-digit victory, 73-58.
The Spiders return to action on Wednesday, taking on Fordham on the road at 7 p.m. before hosting Saint Joseph’s on Jan. 29 for the Play4Kay / National Girls and Women in Sports Day Celebration Presented by CarMax game set for 4 p.m. inside the Robins Center.