Despite trailing by as many as 11 in the third, and by nine with eight minutes left, the University of Rochester women's basketball upset the 21st-ranked University of Chicago Maroons, 63-55, on Sunday inside the Louis Alexander Palestra.

The Yellowjackets doubled up the Maroons in the final frame, 24-12, outscoring the visitors, 22-2, over the final eight minutes before a late three-pointer from Sophia North cut the final deficit to eight, 63-55.

UR headed into the fourth quarter trailing by just four, but five-straight points from the Maroons, plus another two free throws on Chicago's ensuing possession by North, extended the Maroons' lead to 50-41 with 7:59 to play.

However, the Yellowjackets locked down on defense and got their offense going on their next possession, as Raquel Williams knocked down a jumper off Grace Corelli's assist to kickstart a 12-0 run over the next five-plus minutes.

The Maroons shot 0-for-6 from the field and turned it over three times over the five-minute stretch, while UR shot 5-of-10 from the field and 2-for-3 from the free-throw line. Just over a minute and a half later, Abby Gress converted a layup to make it a five-point game, while Erin Lillis's steal and score on Chicago's next possession brought the Yellowjackets within three.

Rochester would then pull within three after Corelli found Lillis in the paint for an easy two before UR took the lead on Deniz Alparslan's jumper from Annelise Dexter with 3:12 remaining after pulling down three offensive rebounds on the possession.

Another miss by the Maroons led to a foul and two made free throws from Dexter, extending UR's lead to three, 53-50 with 2:25 to play, before Chicago finally got back on the scoreboard after a near five-minute scoreless stretch on Annabelle Spotts' tip-in with just over two minutes left.

Lillis, who scored 12 of her 17 points in the fourth, answered with a layup to put UR back up three and then hit a jumper two possessions later to make it a five-point game and force the Bears to spend a timeout with a little over 30 seconds left.

Then out of the timeout, Lillis stole the inbounds pass and took it the length of the court, extending UR's lead to seven, 59-52, with 30 seconds left, while free throws from Gress and Lillis down the stretch put the game on ice and sealed UR's 63-55 victory.

With the early Sunday start, both teams struggled to find their touch in the early goings, with just nine made field goals and 26 combined points in the first quarter. After Kasi Samuda got Chicago on the scoreboard first, Gress and Franki Gomez combined to give Rochester a 5-2 lead, while free throws from Lillis and Alpaslan kept UR in front till the 3:31 mark of the first.

The Maroons though, would end the first quarter on a 6-0 run, with North's triple and Bella Alfaro's driving layup sending UChicago into the second period up 16-10.

In the second, Lillis and Gress sank a pair of buckets to quickly cut into the Maroons' lead, making it a two-point game just over two minutes into the quarter. The two sides would remain within a possession or two for much of the period until the Yellowjackets closed strong late. Corelli's triple from Lillis made it a one-point game with 2:25 left in the first half, while Lillis gave UR a 23-22 halftime lead with a driving layup with 14 seconds left in the period.

UChicago quickly retook the lead though to start the third, as Caroline Workman cashed a trio of triples from nearly the same spot in the left corner to start the third, giving the Maroons a 31-23 advantage just under two minutes into the third.

Another Workman triple, this one just past the six-minute mark of the quarter, extending UChicago's lead to its largest of the morning, 40-29, with 5:47 left in the third, before Rochester quickly closed the gap back to five, with seven of the next eight points, including five from Williams.

Trailing 41-32, Gress and Williams brought the deficit back down to five, and while Alfaro shortly answered with a driving layup, the Yellowjackets would hold UChicago without a point the rest of the third, cutting the visitor's lead down to just four, 43-39, on another Gress' bucket and Alparslan's free throw, headed to the fourth.

With the win, Rochester moves to 9-7 (2-3 UAA) on the year, while the 21st-ranked Maroons drop to 12-4 (2-3 UAA).

Gress led all scorers with 18 points, while Lillis tallied 17. The two graduate students each connected on seven field goals, also leading UR with six rebounds and four steals. Lillis also added a team-high three assists, as the 'Jackets scored 22 points off 20 Chicago turnovers.

As a team, UR shot 35.5 percent, but connected on 50 percent of their attempts in the fourth, while the Maroons shot 33.9 percent for the game, and just 3-for-14 in the final period.

The Yellowjackets continue their four-game home stretch with another UAA weekend beginning on Friday, Jan. 31 with a matchup against Case Western Reserve University at 7:30 p.m. inside the Louis Alexander Palestra.