Purple Knights Fall In '22-23 Women's Basketball Home Opener To Mercy, 67-59

Bridgeport, Conn.-It was a tough 2022-23 home opener for the University of Bridgeport women's basketball team , as the Purple Knights fell to the visiting Mercy College Mavericks, 67-59 in a non-conference game on Tuesday night in Hubbell Gym.  With Tuesday's outcome, both teams are now 3-2 on the young season.

Mercy led 17-12 after the first quarter and never looked back on its way to the victory.  The Mavericks extended their lead to as many as 28 points, 62-34, with 1L28 to play in the third quarter, and they held on to win despite turning the ball over 30 times on the night and scoring only four points in the final quarter.  Bridgeport outscored Mercy, 20-4, over the final 10 minutes of play.

UB struggled shooting the ball on Tuesday, as the Purple Knights connected on only 33.3 percent of their field goals (22-of-66), and Bridgeport also committed 21 turnovers of its own in the contest.

Three UB players reached double-digit scoring against the Mavericks led by junior Shakira Hester (Bronx, N.Y.), who scored a team-leading and career-high 16 points off the bench.  Hester also chipped in five steals and five rebounds on the night.

Also reaching double figures for the Purple Knights on Tuesday were sophomore Brianna Meekins (Bridgeport, Conn.) with 15 points, and freshman Amani Melendez (Woodbridge, Va.) netted 11 points.

Senior Stephanie McBride (Brooklyn, N.Y.) led Bridgeport on the glass grabbing nine rebounds,

Mercy's Katie Wall led all scorers in the game with 25 points.

Up next, the UB women's basketball team will look to get back in the win column on Sunday afternoon, when the Purple Knights travel to Long Island to face Adelphi University.  Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m.