Spider Sports Recap | Week of Nov. 8

 Men’s Basketball

Nov. 9: 70-60 Win Against NC Central 

The Spiders took care of business on Tuesday for the first game of the season, stifling North Carolina Central University 70-60 at the E. Claiborne Robins Center during their home opener. The Spiders, down by five at the half with a score of 36-31, were able to shake off some of their first-half rust with an impressive second half, outscoring NC Central 39-24. Graduate student and forward Grant Golden led the way with a team high of 19 points at the end of the game. Two other double-digit scorers supplemented the offensive push late in the game, with graduate student Jacob Gilyard and junior Tyler Burton scoring 14 apiece. Burton also went a perfect 7-7 from the free-throw line. NC Central put the pressure on early, shooting an impressive 47% from the three-point line on 17 attempts. However, while the team's field-goal percentage stayed pretty on pace in the second half, its three-point shooting plummeted down to 11%. Alex Caldwell led the charge with 17 points, going 6 for 8 from the field and a perfect 4-4 from behind the arc. 

Nov. 12: 74-85 Loss Against Utah State

The Spiders were unable to extend on Tuesday’s win, falling to Utah State in a hard-fought battle. The team traveled down to Alumni Hall in Annapolis Maryland in honor of Veteran’s Day and played at a neutral site for their first non-home game of the season. Once again, Golden lit up the scoring sheet, scoring 24 points of Richmond's 74 points and earned a team high of eight rebounds. Gilyard and Burton kept the hot hand, each posing double-digit figures to supplement Golden’s own scoring. Ultimately, the strong second-half push by Utah State -- a reverse of the case in the Spiders' Tuesday’s game -- uplifted the Aggies behind a flashing display from Justin Bean. Bean scored a game-high of 33 points and had a game-high in rebounds at 15, which was double any other player on the court. 

Women’s Basketball 

Nov. 9: 45-63 Loss Against Charlotte 

Both the women and men’s basketball teams opened up the beginning of the year with back-to-back games at the Robins Center. The Spiders held tight throughout the majority of the first half, but began to lose their fire in the third quarter, despite outscoring the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in the fourth quarter. A 22-7 third quarter put up by Charlotte was too big of a lead to lose, and the Spiders were never able to make up the spread. Charlotte’s Octavia Jett-Wilson paved the way, scoring a team high of 16 points and leading the team with 8 rebounds, a mark also set by Jacee Busick. As for Richmond, sophomore Addie Budnik led the way, putting up a double double, with 16 points and 10 rebounds. The Spiders' shooting from the three-point line ultimately cost them the win, as they were able to drain only five shots out of 33 taken -- only 15%. 

Nov 13th: 96-47 Win Against Hampton 

The Spiders had no trouble getting over their first loss -- coming ready to play on all ends of the court this weekend as the Spiders traveled to Hampton University -- with a win by a wide margin of 96-47. The Spiders poured on the offense, with four scoring double digits: sophomore Siobhan Ryan with 16 points, senior Kate Klimkiewicz with 16 points, senior Emma Squires with 13 points and first-year Sydney Boone with 12 points. The team shot an impressive 56.9% in total from the field, significantly improving its three-point percentage from the last game at 44.8%. The bench put up a whopping 38 points, providing good offense in place of the starting lineup to fuel the victory. Hampton shot only 24.2% from the field and just 14.3% from three, with only two players scoring in double digits: Madison Buford with 11 points and Nylah Young with 10 points.

Cross Country 

Nov. 12: NCAA Southeast Regional Championships 

Both Men's Cross Country and Women's Cross Country ran at Masterson Station Park in Kentucky for the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships. Running a full 10K, the men placed 17th out of 30 teams, while the women finished 15th out of 31 teams in their 6K race. Richmond men’s sophomore Stuart Terrill led the charge, finishing 47th overall with a final time of 30:38. Senior Peter Borger was not very far behind, finishing 52nd place with a time of 30:45 in a tough race. For the women, sophomore Elizabeth Stockman finished 36th with a time of 21:13. 

Men’s Football 

Nov. 13th: 51-27 Win Against Delaware

The Richmond Spiders were able to extend their winning streak to three this weekend, pounding on the University of Delaware on Richmond’s Senior Day. The Spiders have now clawed their way back to a 5-5 record and put up 51 points in an outstanding effort, outscoring Delaware by 14 in both the first and fourth quarters. Richmond’s run game was dominant, with 201 yards compared to Delaware's 40. Delaware’s presence was felt more heavily on the passing front, with 331 compared to Richmond's 179. Quarterback and graduate student Joe Mancuso led the way for Richmond, finishing with 116 rushing yards and two touchdowns, giving them the necessary push to stop Delaware in its tracks. Mancuso also went 13-21 passing for 179 yards for three passing touchdowns in what was a dominant performance.

Contact sports writer Danny Sollecito at danny.sollecito@richmond.edu.