Game 14	NJIT (9-4, 0-0 America East) at UMBC Retrievers (5-7, 0-0 America East)
Date | Time	Thursday, January 1, 2026 | 6:30pm
Team Rosters	NJIT | UMBC
Location | Arena	Baltimore, MD | Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena
All-Time Series	Tied 5-5
Live Stats	In-game statistics (free)
Live Video	ESPN+
Game Notes	NJIT Notes | UMBC Notes

​NEWARK, NJ–The NJIT women's basketball team will open America East Conference action in the New Year when the Highlanders visit UMBC on Thursday.

Game Information
Tip off is slated for 6:30pm inside Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena on ESPN+ with in-game statistics available on UMBCRetrievers.com.

Quick Hits
–NJIT started out the season 9-4, which marks the best start in the NJIT Division I era and best start since the 2005-06 season.
–The nine non-conference wins are the most in the NJIT DI era.
–The Highlanders nine wins have come against Delaware State, Lafayette, Sacred Heart, Fordham, St. Thomas, and home wins against Wagner, Saint Peter's Manhattan, and Drexel.
–Allison Cannon registered a triple-double (14pts, 11ast, 10reb) against Lafayette on November 30, which marked the first triple double in NJIT Division I era and the third triple double all-time.
–Sophomore Olivia Kulyk leads the America East Conference in overall three-point field goals made (38) while ranking 20th in the nation and also tops the conference in three-pointers per game (3.2), while ranking 10th in the nation. She sits in fourth in the conference in scoring at (15.5ppg).
–The 48-point win margin of victory over Saint Peter's on November 19 is the most against a Division I opponent since 2012.
–The 82 total points at Fordham on November 7 are the most points scored by the Highlanders this season.
–The Highlanders have had four players score in double-digits in five games this season.
–NJIT started the 2025 season 6-1 for the first time in program history.
--In the last four seasons, NJIT has won the season opener and started 1-0.

All-Time Series
Thursday will mark the 11th all-time meeting between the two teams with the all-time series tied at 5-5.  NJIT has won the last three meetings against UMBC.

Last Time Out
Four players netted double-figures for NJIT and the Highlanders scored 48 second-half points in a 75-62 road victory at Delaware State Monday afternoon in the final non-conference game of the 2025 season inside Memorial Gymnasium.

NJIT improved to 9-4 on the season while Delaware State fell to 3-12 on the year.  The nine wins in non-conference action are the most wins in the NJIT Division I women's basketball era.

Leading the NJIT offense was Marissa Gingrich and Alejandra Zuniga with 17 points followed by Olivia Kulyk (13) and Allison Cannon (12).  

Kulyk finished the game with a double-double pulling down 10 rebounds, her first of the season.  Gingrich went 7-for-11 with eight rebounds and four assists while Zuniga added six rebounds.

First Triple Double in NJIT Division I Era; Third All-Time - Allison Cannon
Sophomore Allison Cannon registered NJIT's first triple double in 29 years as the Highlanders earned a 71-60 home victory over visiting Lafayette Sunday afternoon in non-conference women's basketball action inside the Joel and Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center.

Recording 14 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, Cannon now owns one of three triple-doubles in NJIT women's basketball history.  Her 11 assists were two shy of the NJIT single-game program record.  The last triple double in Highlander history dates back to 1996 by Kristie Simpson vs. St. Joseph's, 2/19/96 (22 points, 11 rebounds, 10 steals) and by Lauren Battista vs. Old Westbury, 1/28/95 (10 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists).

Largest Margin of Victory Since 2012
The 48-point margin of victory against Saint Peter's (Nov. 19) is the most against a Division I opponent since February 18, 2012, when NJIT defeated Houston Baptist by 60-points, 88-28.  In 2023-24, NJIT defeated Wagner by 44-points (NJIT 80, Wagner 36).

Making a Name in the Record Books
Zuniga, from Madrid, Spain, is a three-time America East Conference All-Conference selection, and has scored 1,381 career points which ranks her third in the Division I era at NJIT and fourth all-time.  The all-time leading scorer at NJIT is Jessica Gerald (2007-11) with 1,504 career points.

New Kids on the Block
NJIT added four newcomers to the 2025-26 roster with three freshmen and one transfer. Mia Gestosani hails from Somerset, NJ, Addison Shen from Concord, MA, Lauren Lee from New Port Richey, FL and Ava Locklear a transfer from Tiffin, IA. 

America East Conference
NJIT will begin its sixth season in the America East and will play a schedule of 16 conference games against the other eight schools.  The Highlanders became the 10th full member of the America East on July 1, 2020 and were selected to finish eighth in the 2024-25 preseason coaches poll.

Zuniga was selected to the America East Preseason All-Conference team.   Last season, Zuniga was picked to the America East first team, as a sophomore she was named to the second team and during her freshman campaign, Zuniga earned America East Rookie of the Year, America East Third team, America East All-Rookie team honors. She is coming off a season which saw the Highlanders guard ranked third in the league in scoring (16.0ppg), third in assists (3.4), fifth in free throw percentage (65.0%) and fifth in field goal percentage (44.0%).

The Highlanders, which made its fifth consecutive appearance in the 2025 America East postseason tournament, concluded its season with a 11-19 overall mark and 8-18 in the America East.

Fans will once again be able to watch every #AEHoops home game on The AE on ESPN with all games airing on ESPN+ or ESPN3 domestically and AmericaEast.TV internationally.

Scouting UMBC
UMBC enters Thursday's contest with a 5-7 overall mark, most recently coming off a 104-22 home victory over Notre Dame of Maryland.  The 104 points were the most points scored by the Retrievers in the Division I era.

Heidi Williams was named America East Rookie of the Week for the second time this season after the historic win that saw the Retrievers break their Division I program record with 104 points on Tuesday. 

Williams recorded a double-double in 27 minutes of action. The freshman scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, while adding five steals on the defensive end. Williams was 7-13 from the floor, including a perfect 6-6 on two-pointers. 

In 12 games this season, Williams has made five starts and is averaging 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. She is second on the team with 24 steals and has blocked 11 shots as well. 

Two Retrievers are averaging double-digits led by Jade Tillman (13.1ppg) followed by Kennedy Austin (12.0ppg).  Tillman has combined for five straight double-digit scoring games.  Austin also tops the team in rebounding (5.9rg). 

UMBC made history in a road win over Virginia on November 13 which was the first Power 4 (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12) victory in UMBC program history, snapping a streak of 38 straight losses against such programs. UMBC was previously 0-4 all-time against Virginia and 0-15 against the ACC. 

The Retrievers were selected to finish eighth in the America East Conference Preseason Poll after finishing 14-15 overall, 7-9 in the league.

Next Up
NJIT will open America East Conference play at home on Saturday, January 3 when the Highlanders host Binghamton at 1pm. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with in-game statistics available on NJITHighlanders.com.

Stay Connected
Stay up to date during the NJIT Women's Basketball season by following @NJITWBB on Twitter and Instagram and liking the NJIT Women's Basketball page on Facebook.