Richmond Tops (RV) Columbia Behind Newell’s Career Night

Saturday, November 15

New York, N.Y.

7 p.m.

University of Richmond

3-1,0-0Atlantic 10

Columbia

2-1,0-0Ivy League

Richmond

Columbia

Richmond Tops (RV) Columbia Behind Newell’s Career Night

11/15/2025 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

NEW YORK – With four players in double figures and a career-high 16 points from Alicia Newell, the University of Richmond women's basketball team defeated (RV) Columbia 77-67 Saturday night in the Big Apple. With the win, the Spiders improved to 3-1 on the season while the Lions suffered their first loss and fell to 2-1.

Richmond Starters
Sweeney, Ullstrom, Newell, Simon, Doogan

How It Happened
Both teams got off to a slow start, shooting a combined 15.8 percent (3-of-19) from the floor as Columbia opened the game with a triple, followed by a pair of free throws from Newell. Columbia then added another three before Rayne Wright responded on the other end with a layup to cut the deficit to 6-4 with 4:24 left in the opening quarter. After trading points, Newell brought the Spiders within one at 11-10, but Columbia closed the period with a layup to take a 13-10 edge into the second.

The Lions opened the second quarter with a jumper before Newell rattled off seven straight points to give Richmond a 17-15 lead at the 7:37 mark. After a Columbia triple reclaimed the advantage, Doogan sparked a 7-0 run to put the Spiders ahead 24-18. Another Lions three trimmed the lead back to three, but Rachel Ullstrom immediately answered on the other end with a triple. After trading baskets, Ullstrom closed the half with another three to send Richmond into the break ahead 32-25.

Columbia again struck first in the third quarter, knocking down a jumper before Ullstrom responded with another three to preserve an eight-point advantage at 35-27. Following a Lions layup, Ally Sweeney connected from deep for a 38-29 lead with 8:37 left. After buckets on both sides, Simon completed an and-one to make it 43-35. The Spiders held a 10-point lead late in the frame before Sweeney pushed it to 55-43 with 39 seconds left. A Lions free throw cut it to 55-44 entering the fourth. Sweeney scored eight points in the quarter on 3-of-3 shooting and went 2-of-2 from deep.

Simon opened the final frame with a putback for a 57-44 advantage. Columbia answered with a jumper before Doogan buried back-to-back threes to reach double figures and extend Richmond's lead to 63-47 with 5:34 remaining. The Lions responded with a 6-0 run, but Newell halted momentum with a layup to keep a 12-point edge at 65-53. Columbia pulled within nine at 67-58, but Sweeney countered with a layup with 1:19 left to maintain the lead. After a Columbia and-one, Doogan knocked down two free throws for a 71-61 cushion with 42 seconds to go. The Lions trimmed it back to single digits with two free throws, but Ullstrom hit two at the line and Richmond posted four total free throws in the final stretch to seal the 77-67 road win.

Notes on the Game

Maggie Doogan surpassed 1,500 career points, becoming the ninth Spider to reach the milestone. She finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists for her 80th career game in double figures.
Columbia held Richmond to 15.8 percent shooting in the first quarter before the Spiders responded with a 61.5 percent mark (8-of-13) in the second.
Newell scored a career-high 16 points with five rebounds and four steals.
Two other Spiders reached double figures: Sweeney (15 pts) and Ullstrom (16 pts). Sweeney added a career-high nine assists and two rebounds, while Ullstrom posted five boards, two assists, one steal and one block.
Richmond shot 25-of-54 (46.3 percent) from the floor, 12-of-26 (46.2 percent) from three and 15-of-15 at the free throw line. The Spiders also totaled 35 rebounds, 18 assists, five blocks and nine steals.
Richmond has now won three straight against Columbia and leads the all-time series 3-1.
Both teams entered the game receiving votes in the AP Top 25.
The Spiders handed Columbia only its fifth home loss since the 2022-23 season. The Lions were 13-2 at home in 2022-23, 14-1 in 2023-24 and 10-1 in 2024-25.
Columbia's leading scorer Riley Weiss finished with 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting, including 1-of-10 from three, as Richmond held the Lions to 5-of-24 from long range.

Up Next
Richmond returns home next week for a pair of matchups. The Spiders will host Temple on Nov. 18 at 6 p.m. before welcoming Navy on Nov. 23 at 2 p.m. for Taylor Swift Night and Camper Reunion.