NEWARK, NJ – Rutgers-Newark could not stop Hunter College senior point guard Shamar Stewartson and suffered a frigid night of shooting to lose for the first time this season, 57-54, in The Golden Dome.

BOX SCORE & PLAY-BY-PLAY

Stewartson – listed generously at 4-foot-11 on the Hawks' roster – made 13 of 16 free throws on her way to 19 points, grabbed seven rebounds and made eight steals to offset 37 turnovers by Hunter (3-5).

Junior guard Jared Tactuk paced the Scarlet Raiders (7-1) with 19 points, but Rutgers-Newark shot a dismal 25% (18-72) from the floor and 50% (12-24) from the free throw line to keep the pesky Hawks in the fray.

Stewartson hit seven of nine free throws as the Hawks drained 15 of 18 charity tosses to seize a 30-26 halftime lead. The Scarlet Raiders made just nine of 35 field goal attempts in the opening period and committed 12 turnovers to the Hawks' 22.

In the see-saw second half, a 3-point jumper by junior guard Samantha Grippo gave the Raiders their biggest lead at 41-35 with 14:02 left. But Hunter rallied to take a 49-45 lead on a layup by freshman forward Kristen Markoe with 3:33 left.

The Raiders tied it up twice more with a layup by freshman guard Courtney Woodard providing a 51-51 deadlock with 59 seconds left. Woodard finished with a game-high eight steals and six points.

But Markoe, who finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals, hit a layup with 29 seconds left before icing the game with a pair of free throws with 9.2 ticks left. Tactuk gunned in a long trey with 2.9 seconds left to make it 55-54, but Stewartson sealed the deal with a pair of free throws with two seconds.

Freshman forward Anthonia Ajumobi came off the bench to pull down a game-high 14 rebounds for the Raiders. Freshman guard ShaQuanna Marshall tallied six points, six rebounds and three assists.

Freshman guard Nicole Lenard posted a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Hawks while freshman forward Marta Banach  added eight rebounds and six points.

Rutgers-Newark hosts York (NY) College in a non-conference doubleheader on Friday in The Golden Dome. The women tip off at 6 p.m. with the men to follow at 8 o'clock.