LOWELL, Mass. (Interstat) — Massachusetts-Lowell defeated visiting Saint Anselm 77-53 on Monday in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game at Costello Athletic Center. The River Hawks improved to 1-0 in their season opener. Saint Anselm was a non-divisional opponent. Attendance was 253. Massachusetts-Lowell controlled the second and third quarters and withstood a late Saint Anselm push to secure the win.

Saint Anselm opened the scoring when Meghan Trapper made a 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 3-0 lead. Nia Chima answered with a layup for Massachusetts-Lowell, and Kayla Solomon made two free throws to give the River Hawks a 4-3 advantage. Maddie Rice added a free throw for a 5-3 lead, but Bella Vaz tied the game with a layup. Solomon made a 3-pointer to put Massachusetts-Lowell ahead 8-5, and Trapper answered with another 3-pointer to tie the game at 8. Solomon hit a stepback jump shot for a 10-8 lead, and Trapper made a jump shot to tie the game again at 10. Yazmin Edwards and Izabella Asp scored on consecutive layups to push the River Hawks ahead 14-10. Miriam Wahlqvist finished a tip-in for Saint Anselm to cut the margin to 14-12, Asp made another layup, Bella Vaz connected from 3-point range, Chima made a layup, and Amarilis Shubick closed the first quarter with a layup and a free throw to tie the game at 18.

Massachusetts-Lowell created separation early in the second quarter. Kayla Solomon made a 3-pointer to give the River Hawks a 21-18 lead, Carla Subirats scored on back-to-back layups, Tyanna Medina hit a 3-pointer, Solomon made a free throw, Kylie Diaz converted a driving layup and Milena Lund finished a driving layup. That 15-0 run turned an 18-18 tie into a 33-18 Massachusetts-Lowell lead. Saint Anselm responded as Meghan Trapper made a 3-pointer and two free throws, Bella Miele added a layup, Trapper hit another 3-pointer and Amarilis Shubick connected from beyond the arc. Izabella Asp made a layup for the River Hawks before Shubick’s 3-pointer cut the margin to 35-31 at halftime.

Massachusetts-Lowell rebuilt its cushion after halftime. Nia Chima made a free throw, Meghan Trapper scored for Saint Anselm, and Kayla Solomon answered with a 3-pointer for a 39-33 lead. Bella Vaz made a layup to cut the margin to 39-35, but Milena Lund and Nia Chima scored on consecutive possessions. Solomon added a layup, Lilly Nossiff scored for Saint Anselm, and Yazmin Edwards made a layup for the River Hawks. Trapper made a layup, Maddie Rice converted a three-point play to bring Saint Anselm within 50-39, and Yazmin Edwards added a tip-in. Bella Miele made a free throw for Saint Anselm, but Achol Agok scored twice inside and added a tip-in before the end of the quarter. Solomon made two free throws, and Agok’s late tip-in gave Massachusetts-Lowell a 60-42 lead entering the fourth.

Massachusetts-Lowell kept Saint Anselm at arm’s length in the fourth quarter. Yazmin Edwards and Kayla Solomon opened the period with layups for a 64-42 lead, and Izabella Asp made a free throw. Avery Romps, Bella Vaz and Madison McCaffery scored on consecutive possessions for Saint Anselm to cut the lead to 65-48, but Tyanna Medina hit a 3-pointer, Asp made a free throw, Nia Chima made a layup and Kylie Diaz added a layup for the River Hawks. Meghan Trapper scored for Saint Anselm, Carla Subirats made a free throw and Amarilis Shubick connected from 3-point range before Emina Kameric closed the scoring with a 3-pointer for Massachusetts-Lowell.

Massachusetts-Lowell’s largest lead reached 25 points after Kylie Diaz’s layup in the fourth quarter. Saint Anselm trimmed the deficit to 17 after three straight baskets, but the River Hawks answered with eight consecutive points. The run included a Tyanna Medina 3-pointer, an Asp free throw, a Chima layup and a Diaz layup. Saint Anselm never led in the second half.

Kayla Solomon led Massachusetts-Lowell with 20 points, six rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes. Nia Chima added nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks in 24 minutes. Achol Agok had six points and four rebounds in 13 minutes. Carla Subirats contributed five points, three rebounds and four assists in 16 minutes. Izabella Asp scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds in 18 minutes. Kylie Diaz had four points, five rebounds, one assist and one block in 21 minutes. Yazmin Edwards scored eight points and had two rebounds in 12 minutes. Milena Lund had four points, four rebounds and five assists in 25 minutes. Tyanna Medina added six points, two rebounds and two assists in 12 minutes, and Emina Kameric scored three points in two minutes.

Massachusetts-Lowell scored 77 points from 66 possessions, an offensive rating of 117.6. The River Hawks had 19 offensive rebounds, 13 assists, three blocks and 12 turnovers. Saint Anselm finished with 53 points.

Saint Anselm stayed within striking distance early behind Meghan Trapper’s outside shooting. Trapper made four 3-pointers in the first half and added free throws during the second-quarter comeback. Bella Vaz contributed layups and a 3-pointer, Amarilis Shubick hit a 3-pointer before halftime and another in the fourth quarter, and Bella Miele added a layup and a free throw. Izabella Asp’s inside scoring helped Massachusetts-Lowell answer. The River Hawks’ 15-0 run in the second quarter remained the defining stretch of the game. Massachusetts-Lowell finished with a 24-point margin.

Massachusetts-Lowell’s upcoming schedule includes a home game against Niagara, followed by road contests at Canisius and Boston College. The River Hawks will host West Georgia and Central Connecticut, visit Merrimack, host New Haven and Boston University, travel to Stonehill, and return home to face Dartmouth. The stretch includes six home games and four road games.