It was Senior Day Saturday at Pritchard Gymnasium as the Stony Brook University Seawolves faced the Maine Black Bears. The Seawolves (14-14, 6-9AE) ended their two game losing streak with yet another nail biter winning 56-53.

Senior Dani Klupenger led the Seawolves, shooting 6-9 from being the arc and finishing with 18 points and three rebounds. “Today was really special for Dani,” said coach Beth O’Boyle, “Every time she takes a shot I just scream nothing but net.”

With 10:26 left in the second half Maine led 42-34. After that it was all Stony Brook and sophomore Sabre Proctor who didn’t start in the game. Off the bench she scored 19 points and grabbed four rebounds in only 22 minutes.

The last 10 minutes of the game saw leads no bigger than five by either team. It was Stony Brook’s second half shooting that gave them the win, shooting 50 percent from the field in comparison to Maine’s 37.5 percent.

“I told them the shots would fall eventually,” O’Boyle said, “We fell on some hard luck early but I liked our aggression especially on the boards. 13 rebounds from (Gerda) Gatling were critical to the win and a great way for her to end her career at Stony Brook.”

In their Senior Day celebration, the Seawolves honored their six seniors, Taylor Burner, Amanda Corona, Gerda Gatling, Dani Klupenger, Sam Landers and Jessica Previlon in a pregame ceremony.

Things went a little differently on Wednesday afternoon, when the team lost a heartbreaker to UMBC by the score of 52-51. Klupenger had a chance to win the game for the Seawolves, but missed a jumper from the corner at the buzzer.

SBU was able to keep the score close despite some early sloppy play on offense, thanks to the effort by Previlon. The forward had a career high 18 points, and made nine of 14 shots from the field.

“She’s having a great senior year,” O’Boyle said. “She’s really a tough cover, and she’s aggressive on the boards. Then she gave some huge baskets for us down the stretch.”

Stony Brook had a 43-42 lead with just 6:27 to play in the game. Then UMBC guard, Raven Harris, hit back to back three pointers to give the Retrievers a five point advantage with 4:26 left. The Seawolves battled back, as Previlon and sophomore forward Sabre Proctor had four points each in the final four minutes.

Stony Brook’s stingy defense over the last few minutes kept the game close, and set up a wild final sequence. With SBU trailing 52-51, Proctor rebounded the ball with 12 seconds left after a missed jumper by Harris. The Seawolves still had two timeouts remaining, but opted not to take one, and instead let junior guard Chikilra Goodman push the ball up the court.

“I love Chikilra in transition, and she was going full speed, and I didn’t want them to get a chance to setup in a zone,” O’Boyle said.

Once up the court the Seawolves got the ball to Klupenger in the corner. Klupenger was well covered by her defender, and when she went up for the shot it appeared that the defender made contact with her. But, no foul was called, much to the dismay of the Stony Brook coaching staff.

“I think every coach thinks there’s contact on that play,” O’Boyle said.

One of the big reasons for the loss was the Seawolves inability to slow down Raven Harris. Harris got going early, and continued to make timely baskets throughout the game. She had 23 points in the game, and was 5 of 7 from three point range. She also showcased her outstanding passing ability during the game, registering seven assists.

The Seawolves were able to stay close in the game despite Harris’ efforts, due to the fact that they were able to limit the rest of the UMBC squad offensively. Stony Brook kept two of the Retrievers starters, Bria White and Brittany Crowell scoreless in the game, as the two combined to shoot 0-13 from the field.

The team’s leading scorer for the season, Proctor, got into foul trouble in the first half, but was able to get going offensively in the second half. In 22 minutes off the bench she had 11 points, and also finished with sevenrebounds. Klupenger and freshman Brittany Snow also had six points apiece in the game, and Goodman lead the team with seven assists.

Stony Brook had a big advantage on the glass in Wednesday’s matinee, outrebounding UMBC 35-21. The Seawolves also grabbed 16 offensive boards in the game, and as a result had 13 second chance points.

A larger number of people than usual were able to catch the Seawolves in action on Tuesday. The Seawolves have their largest crowd of the season, with 434 people. Stony Brook’s fate from here on out rest’s in Albany, NY, as it will play its final game of the season and the America East tournament in the upcoming weeks.

“We can’t wait for the opportunity,” O’Boyle said. “Albany is a great team and were going to give them everything and hope for the best.”