VEAZIE, Maine (Interstat) — Maddie Fitzpatrick scored 14 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and handed out three assists, and Maine held off Siena 70-68 in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game Thursday at Cross Insurance Center. Fitzpatrick, a 5-foot-11 guard from Cumberland, Maine, who previously played at Cheverus, played 36 minutes and helped the Black Bears win their season opener. Lizzy Gruber added 18 points and 10 rebounds for Maine, which improved to 1-0. Siena fell to 1-1. Attendance was 1,063.

Maine opened with an early push. Gruber made a jump shot and two layups, Kaliyah Sain hit a 3-pointer, Lala Woods made two free throws and a 3-pointer, and Abby Price connected from beyond the arc as the Black Bears took a 19-12 lead after the first quarter. Siena closed the quarter with baskets from Myanna Hatchette, Dany Diaz and Kaiya Rain Tucker. Tucker’s layup with 2.40 seconds remaining in the quarter cut the Saints’ deficit to seven.

Siena worked back into the game in the second quarter. Tucker made layups at the 9:18 and 7:13 marks, Karissa Antoine scored inside at 8:38, 6:13 and near the 5:00 mark, Nicole Melious made a layup at 3:29, and Francesca Schiro added a layup at the 3:00 mark. Fitzpatrick made free throws and a layup for Maine, while Gruber added two free throws and a layup. Maine led 32-26 at halftime.

Maine stretched the margin in the third quarter. Sain made a layup at 8:38, Gruber scored inside at 8:14, Fitzpatrick hit a 3-pointer at 7:52 and a layup at 6:45, Woods made a free throw at 7:15 and a layup at 1:30, and Price hit a 3-pointer at 3:26 and two free throws at 0:50.80. Siena answered with Schiro layups, Tucker free throws, a Melious layup, an Antoine jumper and free throw, and a Caydence Hadley layup. Maine took a 52-42 lead into the fourth quarter.

Siena rallied in the final quarter. Schiro made a jump shot at 9:12, Melious made a layup at 8:45, Tucker made a layup at 7:45, Schiro added a jump shot at 6:55, Melious made a layup at 6:32, Schiro hit a 3-pointer at 6:02, Hadley made a layup at 5:46, and Tucker made a layup at 5:28 to give the Saints a 59-58 lead. Woods answered with a 3-pointer at 5:13, and Tucker tied the game at 61 with a layup at 3:49. Olivia Alvarez hit a 3-pointer at 3:26, Gruber made a layup at 2:50, and Melious made two 3-pointers at 2:32 and 1:55 to put Siena ahead 67-66. Fitzpatrick made a layup at 1:26 for Maine, Hatchette made one of two free throws at 0:50.30 to tie the score at 68, and Alvarez made a jumper with 0.20 seconds remaining to give Maine the win.

Siena shot 29 of 72 from the floor, 3 of 23 from 3-point range and 7 of 12 from the free throw line. Maine shot 24 of 53 from the floor, 8 of 25 from 3-point range and 14 of 21 from the free throw line. Siena had 11 offensive rebounds to Maine’s 8, 10 assists to Maine’s 4, three blocks apiece and 12 turnovers to Maine’s 22. Siena scored 68 points on 79 possessions for an offensive rating of 86.4, while Maine scored 70 on 77 possessions for an offensive rating of 90.9.

Melious, a 5-foot-8 guard from Susan E. Wagner and Seton Hall, led Siena with 18 points, four rebounds and three assists in 30 minutes. Schiro, a 5-foot-7 guard from Hillsborough, had 16 points, two rebounds and three assists in 33 minutes. Tucker, a 6-foot-1 guard from Friends Central School, added 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three blocks in 31 minutes. Antoine, a 5-foot-11 guard from Schalmont and Fordham, had nine points, seven rebounds and one assist in 22 minutes. Alvarez, a 5-foot-8 guard from Universal School, finished with eight points, two rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes. Woods, a 5-foot-8 guard from Wheeling Park High School, had 13 points, one rebound and three assists in 38 minutes. Hadley, a 6-foot-1 guard from Bishop Kearney and Towson, added six points, five rebounds and three assists in 22 minutes. Sain, a 6-foot-0 forward from John F. Kennedy, had nine points, three rebounds, one assist and two blocks in 31 minutes.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected Maine 65, Siena 64, and Interstat’s ELO system gave Maine an 81.1 percent probability to win.