Broncs drop two to close out their 2025-26 campaign

By Joshua Yuhas

Rider women’s basketball was officially eliminated from Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament contention following a 67-55 loss to Siena University in the Alumni Gym and a 54-46 loss at Mount St. Mary’s University.

Final home game slip  

Senior night festivities set the stage on Feb. 26 as senior center Kaylan Deveney and graduate student forward Kristina Ekofo were each honored before the game against the Siena Saints.

For Ekofo, a special video package was displayed on the screen of the Alumni Gym with her family        from across the world, sending their congratulations.

“They haven’t been able to come to a game the whole year and my whole college career, so it means everything to just hear from them before the game,” Ekofo said.

Over the opening three minutes, the Broncs carried a 7-2 run, closed out by a 3-pointer from sophomore guard Emmy Roach.

A pair of baskets for the Saints tied the game at 7-7, but the Broncs secured the lead after Ekofo knocked down a 3-pointer and grabbed a steal for Roach to knock down one of her own on the    following possession.

Freshman guard Aina Perez Mesquida continued with a shot from beyond the perimeter, but the Saints followed with a 6-0 run to end the first quarter.

Pushing the pace off a steal, freshman guard Alena Cofield turned and passed it out to junior guard Aliya McIver for an outside score to start the second quarter.

Ekofo scored from the right block a few possessions later, but the Broncs continued on another scoreless run, until Ekofo broke the three-minute drought with a shot from beyond the arc.

In the final four minutes of the half, Ekofo took control in the paint to match the Saints, allowing the Broncs to enter the break with a 32-29 lead.

Scoring was scarce to open the second half with the Saints scoring two layups and the Broncs’ first score coming at the five-minute mark. 

Rider scored five points in the third quarter to Siena’s 11, leaving the Broncs trailing by four points heading into the fourth quarter.

Following a four-minute scoreless run carrying over from the third quarter, the Broncs’ defense produced a contested layup from junior guard Deb Okechukwu and a McIver right-wing 3-pointer.

With just over six minutes remaining, Rider trailed by three points, but the Saints took control over the final five minutes with an answer for each score by the Broncs.

Siena outscored Rider 27-19 in the fourth quarter, rounding out the matchup with the Broncs losing 67-55.

“I thought we played well in the first half,” Head Coach Jackie Hartzell said. “Just the second half and third quarter really hurt. We couldn’t score, but we just didn’t rebound the ball at all.”

Short rotation, short of victory

Rider operated with a shorter rotation on Feb. 28 against the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers, as just six Broncs tallied minutes with McIver, Ekofo and Perez Mesquida playing all 40 minutes.

Through a pair of scores inside from Okechukwu and Ekofo and scores across the court for the Mountaineers, the game was left with a 6-6 tie after six minutes of play.

After a basket from Ekofo, the Broncs went scoreless for the following two minutes, until Deveney nailed a 3-pointer to give Rider the 11-10 lead after one quarter.

Two minutes into the second quarter, a layup from junior forward Sam Richardson marked the first score of the quarter. 

Ekofo and McIver each scored in the paint, but two 3-pointers from the Mountaineers and a score inside of their own left the Broncs trailing by one.

Layups from McIver and Richardson preceded a near three-minute scoring drought for both sides, ending the half with a 23-23 tie.

Taking advantage of missed shots and turnovers, the Mountaineers carried a 6-0 run to open the third quarter, until Ekofo scored in the paint.

The Broncs fell down nine points in the later parts of the third quarter, but a pair of Ekofo layups kept the game within five after three quarters of play.

Rider dropped in a bucket from the charity stripe, while Mount St. Mary’s knocked down two and a layup to hold an eight-point lead halfway through the fourth quarter.

A field goal attempt for the Mountaineers did not fall until five minutes remained, and with four minutes remaining, one fell for the Broncs with a 3-pointer from Perez Mesquida.

Layups from Okechukwu and Ekofo cut the deficit to four points, but the Mountaineers made six free throw shots to close the game with a 54-46 loss for the Broncs.

“There were a lot of ups and downs this season, some tough moments, and some good things we want to build on,” Hartzell told Rider Athletics. “I’m definitely not happy only winning seven games, and that will not be the standard moving forward.”