WINTER PARK, Fla. (December 13, 2025) – Rollins women's basketball came up short in a tightly contested conference matchup on Saturday afternoon, falling 80–67 to the Tampa Spartans.
The back-and-forth began immediately, as a layup and a three from
Faith Newton answered an early Tampa bucket to trade the lead.
McKenna Murphy followed with a jumper to keep Rollins in front, and
Claire Erickson responded to a pair of Spartan free throws to maintain a three-point edge. After a brief Tampa surge,
Elaina Kline-Ruminski regained the advantage with her first points of the day, and
Victoria Escribano added a step-back three moments later. Tampa closed the quarter on a run, however, taking an 18–14 lead into the second.
Rollins answered quickly to open the next frame, as Erickson and Newton knocked down consecutive threes.
Grace Craig followed with a bucket in the paint to pull the Tars even at 22, and
Tara Murray drained a three on the ensuing possession to put Rollins back on top. Momentum swung back toward the Spartans, but the Tars countered with a Newton finish and seven straight points from Kline-Ruminski to carry a four-point lead into halftime.
The battle continued out of the break, with Craig scoring the first two baskets of the half. Erickson buried a three-pointer to briefly give Rollins the edge, and she and Craig continued to trade scores with Tampa over the next few possessions. After a short scoring drought, Kline-Ruminski tied the game with a three, and Craig followed with a layup a minute later to even things again at 53. Tampa closed the quarter strong, though, pushing ahead by four heading into the final period.
Newton and Erickson opened the fourth with timely baskets to keep the Tars within reach, but a four-minute scoring drought allowed the Spartans to create separation. Late buckets from Craig and Murray attempted to close the gap, but Tampa held on to secure the 80–67 win.
Rollins shot an efficient 52.6% from three and 48.2% from the field in the contest. The tightly contested matchup featured seven ties and 13 lead changes, with both teams using double-digit scoring runs to swing momentum. Newton, Craig, and Erickson each scored 15 points, while Kline-Ruminski added 12. Craig led the Tars with six rebounds, and Erickson paced the squad with five assists.
Rollins drops to 4–4 on the season and 0–4 in SSC play, while Tampa improves to 5–5 (1–2 SSC). The Tars return to action Monday, Dec. 15, for a 2 p.m. matchup against Ave Maria University inside Warden Arena.
