Box Score
Box Score (PDF)

Moon Township, Pa. / Charles L. Sewall Center  – The Robert Morris University women's basketball team suffered a 65-63 loss to Hofstra in the season opener for both teams at the Charles L. Sewall Center in Moon Township, Pa. The teams traded the lead 10 times and the game saw 12 different tie scores before Hofstra was able to build a late four-point lead and hold on for the win.
 
Senior forward Artemis Spanou (Rhodes, Greece / Nea Smyrni), who finished the 2012-13 season with 24 consecutive double-doubles, recorded her 25th in a row with 16 points and 10 rebounds despite playing just seven minutes in the first half. She had 16 points and 10 rebounds, all but one of those points and one rebound coming the second half.
 
Freshman Anna Niki Stamolamprou (Thessaloniki, Greece / Aristotelio College of Thessaloniki) had 14 points, four steals and two assists in her collegiate debut.
 
Anma Onyeukuwas the only Pride scorer in double digits with 13 points and tied for team-high honors with seven rebounds. Every Hofstra player that entered the game, all 11, scored at least two points in a true team effort to carry the scoring load.
 
"We're disappointed with the home opening loss. It was certainly a game we could have won even though it was against a team that went to the Colonial Athletic Association finals last year," said 11^th year RMU head coach Sal Buscaglia. "Our foul situation in the first half with Artemis, Cassie (Oursler) and Jolie (Olingende) hurt us quite a bit. Along with Kelly (Hartwell) going down with some cramping, our lineup wasn't we wanted it to be. I thought our team showed a lot of energy and I was impressed with the potential of our freshman."
 
A back-and-forth second half featured eight ties and six lead changes. The Colonials, on three-pointers by sophomore Ashley Ravelli (Milano, Italy / The Hun School) and Stamolamprou, were able to take a 58-55 lead with 6:21 to play. A trey by Kelly Loftus gave the game its final tie 23 seconds later.
 
Over the next three minutes, RMU battled to the point of taking a 61-60 lead on a short jumper from freshman Rebeca Navarro (Galicia, Spain / Las Siege Palmas). A 5-0 run finished by a three-point play by Dee Thomas-Palmer put Hofstra on top 65-61 with 2:01 to play.
 
RMU would not surrender another point, but were only able to get two points and those come from the charity stripe via freshman center Cassie Oursler (Grand Island, N.Y. / Grand Island). The Colonials had the final possession of the game, but a runner in the lane by Ravelli was short and Alexis Carter secured the rebound and victory for the Pride.
 
Robert Morris started the game by committing a couple early turnovers and Hofstra took advantage by jumping out to a 6-0 lead started by an Annie Payton three-pointer. An offensive rebound and putback by Oursler was the first points of the season by RMU and started a 7-0 surge that was capped by a pair of free throws by Stamolamprou.
 
Hofstra jumped back out to a six-point lead and the back-and-forth contest was underway. A 12-0 Pride run, fueled by six shots from the charity stripe and a pair of Carter three-pointers gave the visitors their biggest lead of the game, 29-20, with 7:26 left in the first half.
 
RMU stormed back to tie the game at 29 on a pair of Kelly Hartwell (Woodbridge, Va. / Gar-Field) free throws before Hofstra scored the final five points of the opening half. The Colonials were able to overcome 19.4 percent (6-31) shooting in the first half by forcing 15 turnovers and turning 13 offensive rebounds in 14 second-chance points.
 
Robert Morris continues the longest homestand in team history with its third annual Elementary Education Day game against Marshall on Tuesday, Nov. 12. Tip-off is slated for 10:00 a.m.
 
Notes: 2013-14 marks the 38th season of RMU women's basketball ... Tonight's game marked the fifth consecutive season opener at home ... RMU now 13-25 in season openers, 8-10 in home season openers … Colonials now 4-7 in season openers under Sal Buscaglia ... RMU is 1-1 against Hofstra … The Colonials shot 42.9 percent (12-28) in the second half after shooting just 19.4 percent (6-31) in the first half … RMU was 7-of-18 on three-pointers … Hofstra was 22-57 (38.6 percent) from the floor … A total of 43 fouls were called leading to 51 free throws under the NCAA's new officiating guidelines.

Tweet #ColonialPride