PENSACOLA, Fla. – On Saturday afternoon, the No. 12/20 Union University women’s basketball team defeated the University of West Florida 86-69 to further solidify their place at the top of the Gulf South Conference standings and to give the Argos their second conference loss of the season. With the win, Union improves to 14-2 overall (9-0 GSC), while West Florida drops to 11-4 overall (7-2 GSC).
Macey Lee earned a career milestone in the game by grabbing her 500th rebound, and Alexis Callins led Union in scoring with 17 points, her fourth double-digit effort in conference play this season. Callins is averaging 12.9 points per conference game, which is more than any other Lady Bulldog thus far.
The Argos jumped out to a 17-7 lead with 3:53 seconds remaining in the first quarter, but the Lady Bulldogs wasted no time responding as they went on a 21-8 run through the 7:47 second mark in the second period to take the advantage and never looked back. The run was highlighted by six points from Bethany Dillard, who sunk the three-pointer that gave the Lady Bulldogs their hard-fought 28-25 lead.
From there, the game was all Union. The Lady Bulldogs entered halftime with a 45-39 advantage and added 23 points in the third quarter and 18 in the fourth to earn their ninth conference win of the season. Both teams had season highs in turnovers with the Argos giving the ball up 27 times and the Lady Bulldogs doing so 22 times. Overall, Union outshot West Florida 43.8 percent to 42.6 percent from the field, 36.8 percent to 31 percent from beyond the arc, and 72.7 percent to 61.5 percent from the free throw line.
Five Lady Bulldogs scored double-digit points in the game, including Callins with 17, Dillard with 14, Jeremia Montgomery with 12, Emily Jones with 12, and Keisharna Lucas with 11. Olivia Lee grabbed six rebounds in the game, followed by Shylee Morrison, Lucas, and Montgomery who each had five. Dillard also added four of her own for a personal season high. Jazalyn Anousinh, Jones, and Morrison dished out four assists apiece to account for 12 of Union’s 19 total assists. This was a season high for Jones. Anousinh led in steals with four, and for the second game in a row, Courtney Zensen had Union’s only block.
Rylie Stephens had a big game for the Argos, shooting 12-21 from the field and 5-5 from the foul line as part of her 30-point night. Haidyn Pitsch and Bella Green grabbed seven rebounds each, while Bella Stone had six assists.
Up next, the Lady Bulldogs return home for their highly anticipated matchup against GSC rival Lee University. Tipoff is scheduled for Jan. 16 at 5:30 p.m.
