Feb. 5, 2001

Box Score

College Park, Md. - The University of Maryland (15-7, 6-5 ACC) women's basketball team fell 69-56 to No. 24 Virginia (15-9, 6-5 ACC) Monday night in Cole Field House. The loss saw Maryland's five-game ACC win streak come to an end, and was only the Terps' second loss at home all year.

Virginia jumped out to the early lead on a Svetlana Volnaya 3-point bucket that would set the Cavs' offensive pace for the rest of the night. From there on, it was Virginia possessing the lead the entire way, with the Terrapins in close pursuit all night. The Cavaliers would lead by as much as eight at the 10:19 mark in the first half, but could pull ahead no farther. The Terps made it as close as two before the half ended, bridging the gap on a pair of free throws by junior forward Deedee Warley (Fort Washington, Md.), who ended the night with a season-high 25 points.

The Cavaliers' Volnaya continued to scorch the nets from beyond the arc to keep Virginia ahead by as many as 13 points six minutes into the second half. She ended with a game-high 25 points. At no point during the game would Maryland let the Cavaliers get a comfortable, and whittled away the Virginia advantage again to as little as four points with four minutes remaining. Strong foul shooting down the stretch kept the game just out of reach for the Terps, however. Virginia eventually stretched the lead to as much as 14 points, before leaving College Park with a 13-point win.

For Maryland, it was the easy shots that would leave the Terps reeling. "They hit their shots ... and we didn't, " said Maryland head coach Chris Weller in her postgame comments. "Virginia played well. I guess it's a credit to the physical nature of their defense. I think we shot about as poorly as we have all year." Down the stretch, the Terrapins missed lay-ups and foul shots that crippled their comeback, finishing just 17-33 (39.3%) from the foul line for the night.

"We won in all the categories we set out to win, highlighted Weller of her team's execution of the game plan. "We out-rebounded them, had less turnovers, and got good shots. We just didn't make them."

Volnaya led all scorers with 25, including six 3-pointers. Teammate Schuye LaRue finished with 13 rebounds, all on the defensive end, and added 14 points. For Maryland, Warley posted her seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 25 points and 13 rebounds. Kiki Wimbush (Suitland, Md.) was the only other Terrapin in double figures, and finished with 12.

Maryland meets Florida State Sunday in their next contest. Gametime is 2 p.m. at Cole Field House. Virginia hosts Georgia Tech on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m. in their next ACC contest.