JACKSON, Tenn. – On Thursday night, the No. 14/13 Union University women’s basketball secured their 18th conference victory of the season as they beat the University of West Florida 96-70. The Lady Bulldogs have already secured a berth in the Truist GSC Championship and will host a quarterfinal round game on Mar. 4. With their win over West Florida, Union is now 23-3 overall (18-1 GSC), while the Argos drop to 16-9 overall (12-7 GSC).
West Florida led for nearly the entire first quarter, taking a 15-9 lead after two Liv Becker free throws at the 3:08 second mark. However, Emily Jones made a layup with 2:59 seconds left in the quarter to start a 27-0 run that lasted until West Florida’s Delaney Trushel made a layup 2:37 seconds into the second period. Union’s impressive streak was powered by the Lee sisters with Olivia Lee, the team’s top scorer in the game, putting up five points and Macey Lee adding six points in the form of two layups and two free throws.
Although the Argos outscored Union in the second half, it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit with Union holding on for the 26-point win. The Lady Bulldogs outshot West Florida 45.9 percent to 42.4 percent from the field and 85 percent to 69.2 percent from the foul line. Union also forced 28 West Florida turnovers to their own 19, but the Argos shot 31.3 percent from beyond the arc to Union’s 28.2 percent.
Olivia Lee scored double digits for her 10th straight game, dating back to Jan. 16. Lee’s 18 points led the team against the Argos, and she also led Union from the free throw line, going 5-8. Bethany Dillard, Shylee Morrison, and Emily Jones joined Lee in double digits with 16, 15, and 11, respectively. Morrison’s 15 points and seven field goal makes were career highs for her. She also dished out a team-high five assists in the game.
Jazalyn Anousinh grabbed seven boards to lead Union in that category, and Alexis Callins had a personal season-high five steals, followed by Courtney Zensen with four. Five Union players had one block apiece, including Olivia Lee, Keisharna Lucas, Sierra Stedman, Jones, and Zensen.
Bella Green led West Florida with 25 points on 12-20 shooting from the field. Rylie Stephens had eight rebounds, followed by Bella Stone with seven and Green with six.
Up next, the Lady Bulldogs will play their final regular season home game on senior day as Valdosta State University comes to town. Tipoff is scheduled for Feb. 22 at 2:00 p.m.
