No. 9 Maryland loses freshman guard Lea Bartelme to a knee injury in an 88-70 win over Towson

COLLEGE PARK Md AP Just when No Maryland got one key athlete back from injury the Terrapins lost another Freshman Lea Bartelme left in the second quarter of the Terps - win over Towson on Thursday night with what looked like a potentially severe knee injury Bartelme was driving toward the basket when she went down and she had to be helped off the court unable to put weight on her left leg Knee injury you saw that Maryland coach Brenda Frese stated Just going to be evaluated in the next couple days Bartelme a -foot- guard from Slovenia has started all four games for Maryland so far Although Bartelme had to exit early Kaylene Smikle returned to the court playing for the first time this season after a leg injury I m someone who trusts the process I m not going to rush back Smikle announced I ve had good coaches good teammates who have been giving me confidence on the side when I m working out just helping me just stay in the moment Smikle played only but she finished with a pretty full stat line points on -of- shooting with five rebounds You can see what she brings to the table in such a short amount of time with limited reps Frese mentioned She just plays the right way You saw when she was on the floor in the limited time her scoring her passing just her understanding of the contest The other big standout for Maryland was -foot- freshman Addi Mack who followed up a -point outing against Georgetown last weekend with points and six assists against Towson Mack s presence helped the Terps withstand Bartelme s injury at least in this match Maryland had assists and turnovers but Mack had only two turnovers with three steals She continues to grow every competition Clearly we need her offense She s given us a great scoring punch Frese reported Just really running the crew and understanding I think that s the hardest part in that position when to points when to get everyone involved and understanding clock management Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top throughout the season Sign up here AP women s college basketball https apnews com hub ap-top- -womens-college-basketball-poll and https apnews com hub womens-college-basketball Source