SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Despite a tough start, the Bryant University women's basketball team persevered to take down Fairleigh Dickinson, 82-77, Saturday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center.

With the victory, the Bulldogs (10-4, 3-0 Northeast Conference) win their fourth-straight game and improve to 3-0 in NEC play for the first time in program history, while the Knights (3-11, 0-3 NEC) drop a tough decision despite shooting nearly 50 percent from the field.

Junior guard Tiersa Winder (Baltimore, Md.) paced the Black and Gold with a career-high 25 points and seven rebounds, while classmate Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) notched her sixth double double in seven games with 19 points and 16 boards.

Freshman Ivory Bailey (Wyomissing, Pa.) rounded out Bryant's double digit scorers with 19 with Jenniqua Bailey (Bloomfield, Conn.) chipping in five assists and four points.

FDU's Erika Livermore led all scorers with 27 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks, with Kelsey Cruz adding 19 points and five steals. Valerie Oyakhilome added 17 points of five-of-six shooting from deep off the bench.

An inauspiciously sloppy start by the Bulldogs, that included eight turnovers, spotted FDU a 13-4 edge just over five into the contest but, an 11-2 run brought the hosts back even, 15-15, at the under-12 media break. The Knights maintained their slim but steady edge through the five minute mark until a Winder 3-pointer pushed the Black and Gold out front for the first time in the contest, 30-29, at the final media timeout of the half.

FDU built its lead back up to five just before halftime behind the deadly 3-point shooting of Oyakhilome but an Ivory Bailey trifecta with five seconds left brought Bryant with a point, 41-40.

Livermore led all scorers at the half with 17 points, while Rucker logged her 11th double double of season with 13 and 11 at the midway point.

The Knights continued their sharp shooting out of the locker room, converting on five of their first seven shots to extend the advantage to four points, 51-47, with 15:45 to play. An 8-2 run ballooned the lead to 10 points before a Rucker free throw brought Bryant withi  a point, 59-50, at the under-12 media timeout.

Despite FDU's dead eye shooting Bryant continued to fight, cutting the margin to just five points, 66-61, with 7:21 remaining on the clock. Minutes later, a pair of Rucker free throws brought the hosts within a single point, yet again, before a Maureen Leahy (Springfield, Pa.) freebie at the 5:20 mark evened the score, 68-68.

Three-straight points from Winder topped off a 9-0 run which pushed the Bulldogs back in front, 71-68, but Livermore refused to let the game get away, bringing her team back within one with three minutes to play.

The Black and Gold pushed the margin to five points with 33 seconds left on the clock but a Cruz 3 from 25 feet cut it back to two points with 23 ticks remaining. However, strong defense and clutch free throw shooting down the stretch sealed an 82-77 Bulldog victory.

Looking ahead, the Black and Gold will look to continue their streak of strong play when they host Saint Francis U. on Monday at 7 p.m.