LIVINGSTON, Alabama – The Lee University women's basketball team is moving onto the semifinal round of the Gulf South Conference tournament after a 70-61 victory over host West Alabama in the quarterfinal of the tournament on Tuesday evening. 

The Lady Flames will continue the road journey on Friday facing top-seed Valdosta State. Lee is 1-2 against the Blazers this season but dropped the last meeting in an overtime thriller. The winner will advance to the championship round at a neutral site to be determined. 

"I'm proud of our team and the effort we gave tonight. West Alabama is a really good team and for our girls to be able to win on the road says a lot about the growth we have made as a team," said Lee head coach Marty Rowe after the victory. "We only made three 3-pointers tonight but that is a positive. We got stops tonight when we needed them and didn't rely on making shots. That is the mentality this team is starting to get. We are excited about the chance to head back down to Valdosta on Friday." 

Haley Schubert led the Lady Flames with 33 points and seven rebounds. Julia Duncan followed with 15 points while Halle Hughes contributed nine points, five assists and six rebounds.  

Lee got off to a quick start, outscoring the Tigers 23-14 in the first quarter. The margin grew to 36-21 at halftime. West Alabama rallied back to outscore the Lady Flames 18-15 and 22-19 in the final two quarters. Lee shot 47% from the field (26-of-55).  Coach Rowe mentioned that they made only three shots from long range (3-of-17) but they marched to the charity stripe 17 times and converted 15.  

Tazsa Garrett-Hammett was best for the Tigers with 23 points. Bria Dent produced a double-double in the loss, 15 points and 18 rebounds as West Alabama won the battle of the boards 33-29. Jala Williams rounded out the double-digit scoring with 10 points. The Lee defense stood out holding the Tigers to 39% shooting from the field and 20% from 3-point range. They were awarded 20 free throws and canned 16.