Rhode Island Starters
Dale, Moffitt, Vargas, Jones, Jorgensen

Holy Cross Starters
LaBarbera, Faulkner, Swords, Smith, Manis 

How it Happened
Rhode Island improved to 4-0 at the Ryan Center, defeating visiting Holy Cross 73-58 Tuesday night at the Ryan Center.

Rhode Island (5-2) opened on a tear, outscoring Holy Cross 21-9 in the first quarter. The Crusaders were just 3-for-15 from the field and went without a make from the field for the final 4:39 of the period.

Rhody carried the momentum into the second quarter, pushing the lead to 19 points (30-11) as Holy Cross did not make it's first field goal until there was just 3:49 remaining in the half. The Rams went cold from that point on however, making just one more basket before the break as the Crusaders closed on an 11-3 run that sent them into halftime trailing by just nine (33-24).

Holy Cross (4-2) came out of the locker room and continued to chip away at Rhody's lead, eventually pulling ahead 45-44 with 2:53 to go in the third quarter. The teams traded the lead several times over the next five minutes but Rhody reclaimed it for good after a pair of free throws from Davida Dale made it 52-51 URI with 7:56 remaining in regulation. Rhode Island then used a 12-0 run over the next four minutes to widen the gap to 13 (51-64) and led by double digits the rest of the way.

Inside the Box Score

• The Rams shot 48-percent (29-60) from the field and scored 17 points off of 16 Holy Cross turnovers.
• URI outscored Holy Cross in the paint 40-22.
• The Rams also held the advantage in bench scoring (18-4), steals (10-6) blocks (4-2), assists (16-13) and rebounds (35-34).
• Rhode Island held Holy Cross without a field goal for a span of 10:50 between the first and second quarters. During that stretch, the Crusaders missed 13 consecutive attempts from the field.
• Redshirt senior Davida Dale scored team-high 17 points, had seven steals and dished out seven assists. She played all 40 minutes and did not commit a turnover.
• Senior Nicole Jorgensen double-doubled, finishing the night with 16 points and 11 rebounds.
• Freshman Kassondra Brown added 15 points, four rebounds and one block in just 15 minutes on the floor.
• Redshirt junior Erin Jones registered 12 points, four rebounds, four assists and one block for the Rams.
• Junior Marta Vargas was the fifth Ram to score in double figured as she contributed 10 points.
• Junior Maia Moffitt pulled down six rebounds (three offensive, three defensive) and had a pair of steals.

Up Next

The Rams return to action this weekend at the Ocean State Tip-Off Tournament, hosted by Bryant. Rhody will open play against Brown, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, and then face either Bryant on Providence on Sunday.