HOMEWOOD, Ala. – Playing some of its best overall basketball of the season, the Lee women's basketball team advanced to the finals of the Gulf South Conference Championship by defeating rival Valdosta State University 70-52 on Saturday afternoon at the Pete Hanna Center.
The top-seeded Lady Flames improved to 22-6 and will face Union for the third time in a row on Sunday. It marked the third time Lee had beaten the Lady Blazers this season.
Tied at 16 at the end of the first quarter, the Lady Flames outscored the Lady Blazers 25-18 in the second frame and took a 41-34 halftime lead and never trailed. The tally read 55-44 after three periods and Lee took complete command in the final period.
The Lady Flames shot 51% from the field (29-of-57) and made 9-of-20 3-pointers (40%). They were awarded seven free-throws and converted four. On the other hand, Lee held Valdosta to just 32% shooting overall (17-of-53). The Lady Blazers attempted 21 triples and canned 5 (24%). However, they did march to the charity stripe 21 times and converted 13.
In the assist department, the Lady Flames dished off 21 while being guilty of 11 turnovers. The defense forced 16 Valdosta floor mistakes and they had only 9 assists. The rugged Valdosta club held a 38-33 advantage in the rebounding department.
All-American Haley Schubert was in top form. She played 39 minutes, canned 4-of-7 3-pointers, poured in 26 points, dished off 5 assists and went to the boards for 4 rebounds. Macy Woodworth battled inside and was 6-of-7 from the floor, 13 points. Mallory Hampton finished with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Morgan Carbaugh knocked down a pair of key triples and totaled 8 points. Addison Smith followed with 7 rebounds and 5 points while Mia Hurst fought for 6 rebounds and 5 points.
Head Coach Marty Rowe was super pleased with the team effort. "Coach Jan Spangler had a great game plan today and we executed at a high level. When Hannah got in early foul trouble, others had to step up and Macy did just that. Valdosta is a really good team. They are well coached and never go away. That was the message at halftime was that VSU wasn't going to quit. Tomorrow is going to be a battle as it always is against Union.
Tamiya Francis had 14 points for the losing Lady Blazers. Aleisha Curry was the leader inside with 11 points and 8 rebounds before fouling out late in the game.
