NEWARK (Interstat) — Mia Gestosani scored 14 points and NJIT held off Rider 50-45 in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game at Fleisher Athletic Center. NJIT improved to 1-0. Rider fell to 0-1. The game was played before 242 spectators. NJIT’s home victory came in the season opener for both teams. NJIT, the home team, used a late fourth-quarter push and a strong defensive effort to close out the visiting Broncs. Rider scored 45 points from 73 possessions, an offensive rating of 61.9. NJIT scored 50 points from 70 possessions, an offensive rating of 71.6.

Rider shot 17 of 67 from the floor, 4 of 18 from three-point range and 7 of 10 from the free throw line. NJIT shot 16 of 49 from the floor, 3 of 23 from three-point range and 15 of 25 from the free throw line. Rider had 10 offensive rebounds, 6 assists and 11 turnovers. NJIT had 12 offensive rebounds, 4 assists, 9 blocks and 21 turnovers.

Gestosani, a 5-foot-8 guard from Somerset, N.J., who previously played at Mount Saint Mary Academy, finished with 14 points, five rebounds and one assist in 32 minutes. Giana Hoddinott of Rider, a 5-foot-9 guard who previously played at Delone Catholic, led the Broncs with 16 points and five rebounds in 35 minutes. Madilyn Dogs of NJIT, a 6-foot guard from Kewaskum, had 12 rebounds, one assist and two blocks in 28 minutes. Marissa Gingrich of NJIT, a 5-foot-7 guard from Mifflin County, scored 21 points with two rebounds and one assist in 35 minutes. Gabby Sweeney of Rider, a 6-foot-1 forward, had seven points, 11 rebounds, five assists and one block in 35 minutes. Aliya McIver of Rider, a 5-foot-9 guard from White Plains, added nine points, seven rebounds and two assists in 38 minutes. Allison Cannon of NJIT, a 5-foot-9 guard from Holmdel, scored 10 points with three rebounds and one block in 15 minutes. Mackenzie Wright-Rawls of NJIT, a 6-foot forward from Central York, had one point, eight rebounds and one block in 21 minutes. Alena Cofield of Rider, a 5-foot-3 guard from Neshaminy High School, scored eight points with three rebounds in 22 minutes. Aina Perez Mesquida of Rider, a 5-foot-9 guard from Universal School, had four points, four rebounds and one assist in 23 minutes.

In the first quarter, McIver made a jump shot at 9:46 remaining and Perez Mesquida made a layup at 8:40 as Rider took an early 4-2 lead. NJIT answered with Ava Locklear’s turnaround jumper at 9:18 and Allison Cannon’s jump shot at 6:49. McIver’s two free throws gave Rider a 6-4 lead, and Sweeney’s jump shot at 5:36 made it 8-4. Gingrich made a layup at 4:09, Cannon made layups at 3:31 and 2:42, Gestosani made a driving layup at 2:41, a free throw at 2:00 and a 3-pointer at 1:35. Sweeney hit a 3-pointer for Rider at 1:17, but Cannon’s floating jumper at 0:51.50 gave NJIT an 18-11 lead after the opening quarter.

Rider rallied in the second quarter. Allison Cannon made a tip-in layup at 8:54 to open the second-quarter scoring, extending NJIT’s lead to 20-11. Hoddinott answered with a 3-point jump shot at 6:28, Perez Mesquida made a layup at 5:53, Hoddinott made the second of two free throws at 4:50 and then made a driving layup at 4:02 to cut the deficit to 20-19. Sweeney’s jump shot at 3:33 gave Rider a 21-20 edge. Gingrich made a layup at 3:22 and Olivia O’Meally made the first of two free throws at 2:22. Gingrich added a pullup jump shot at 1:51, Hoddinott made a layup at 1:32, and Gingrich hit a 3-pointer with 29.3 seconds remaining to give NJIT a 28-23 halftime lead.

Gingrich opened the third quarter with a layup at 9:48 and later made a 3-pointer at 8:19. Julia Karpell made the second of two free throws for Rider at 8:33, and Gingrich made free throws at 7:45 and 7:24 to push the lead to 37-24. Cofield made a layup at 5:01 and a jump shot at 4:03, Hoddinott made a layup at 3:22 and McIver made two free throws at 2:35 as Rider stayed within striking distance. Gingrich added a pullup jump shot at 4:24, and NJIT carried a 39-32 lead into the fourth quarter.

Rider cut into the lead in the fourth. McIver hit a 3-point jump shot at 8:38, Cofield made a layup at 6:47 and Hoddinott made a free throw at 6:16 to make it 40-38. Gestosani answered with a layup at 5:42 and a free throw at 5:41, and Cofield’s pullup jump shot at 5:26 brought Rider within 43-40. The decisive stretch came after that basket. NJIT did not allow another Rider field goal until Hoddinott’s layup with 12.4 seconds remaining. Wright-Rawls made a free throw at 7:37, Locklear made a free throw at 3:20, Gingrich made a free throw at 1:14 and Gestosani made five free throws in the final 52.4 seconds. Gestosani’s free throws made it 50-40 with 23.7 seconds left. Hoddinott made a layup at 12.4 seconds and a 3-point field goal at 2.4 seconds, but NJIT closed out the win. Hoddinott’s final 3-pointer made the final margin five points.

Rider will next visit Central Connecticut, and NJIT will next host Merrimack. Both teams return to action in their next scheduled games.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of NJIT 60, Rider 49. Interstat’s ELO system had projected NJIT with a 94.1 percent probability to win.