MONTEVALLO, Ala. – The Lee University women's basketball team built up a 38-18 halftime lead and led by as much as 27 points early in the third period. The University of Montevallo staged a comeback but the Lady Flames responded and posted a 71-56 Gulf South Conference victory on Saturday afternoon.
It was a single Falcon who engineered the comeback midway of the third quarter. Shalaxia Little scored 11 straight points and sliced the Lee lead to 43-32 with four minutes remaining in the frame. The Lady Flames weathered the storm but were actually outscored by Montevallo 18-16 in the third period and 19-17 in the fourth.
The win was Lee's fifth straight and sets up a key meeting with the University of Alabama in Huntsville on Thursday (5:30). The Chargers have won 17 straight games and own a 13-0 record in GSC play. The Lady Flames improved their record to 9-4 in conference play and 13-5 overall. The Falcons continue to battle but own a 2-11, 3-15 mark.
Anna Muhonen recorded a double-double in leading the Lee victory. She finished with 24 points and pulled down 15 rebounds. Libby Privett turned in a strong overall performance and tallied 18 points, and Baylee Delbridge fought for 13 markers. Abby McFarland came on in reserve and helped the cause in the final two periods, recording 12 points.
The Lady Flames shot 49% (26-of-53) overall but made just 5-of-18 triples (28%). They also made 14-of-23 free throws (64%). Lee outrebounded the Falcons 37-28 and tallied 42 points in the paint to only 22 for the home team. The clean game saw Lee commit 12 turnovers and the Falcons 11. The Lady Flames also totaled 16 assist.
After her dazzling 11-straight points, Little finished the contest with 13 markers in leading the Montevallo scorers. Emily Mouser was the only other Falcon posting double-figure points with 12. She was also the leading rebounder with five. The Falcons shot 36% from the field (18-of-50) and also struggled from 3-point range 6-of-23 (26%). They made 14-of-21 freebies (67%).
Coach Marty Rowe's thoughts:
"We had great energy in the first half, especially on the defensive end and were able to stretch the lead but give Montevallo credit for fighting back in the second half. We were able to hang in there and find a way to make plays when we needed to down the stretch. It was a good weekend on the road and we are looking forward to being back home."
