Box Score HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -
Ariel Wilson,
Catherine Taylor and
Peyton Parker hit season-high point totals as West Alabama women's basketball defeated Alabama-Huntsville 77-65 in Gulf South Conference play at Spragins Hall on Saturday.
With the win, the Tigers (4-5, 1-2) snap a two-game conference skid, while the Chargers (1-7, 0-3) drop their third straight league contest.
"Our offense had a strong showing today," UWA head coach
Rusty Cram said. "We minimized turnovers which gave us more chances to points on the board."
"The main takeaway from this one is that we were the aggressor for most of the day. We need to keep at it and learn how to take the game to our opponents, and I think we did a fantastic job of that today."
West Alabama struck first, building a 4-0 lead with layups from
Chloe Culpepper and
Ariel Wilson on back-to-back possessions. Alabama-Huntsville responded with nine unanswered to build a five-point lead with 3:58 to play in the first quarter.
The Tigers fought back to seize their second lead of the game on a
Catherine Taylor jumper, putting UWA in front 18-17 midway through the second period.
After a 21-21 stalemate with five left to play in the half,
Peyton Parker converted from beyond the arc, kicking off a 9-5 UWA scoring run to push the Tigers to their greatest advantage of the half, a 32-26 lead.
UWA and UAH traded three-pointers before the halftime buzzer, leading the Tigers into the intermission with a 35-31 lead.
The Tiger defense disallowed a field goal from the opposition for the first six and a half minutes of the third period, allowing West Alabama's offense to build an eleven-point advantage over the Chargers with a 15-8 scoring run to start the final half of play.
UAH fought back to trail 50-46 before back-to-back three-pointers from Taylor and Parker led the Tigers into the fourth with a 56-48 advantage.
The Chargers threatened to regain the lead, pulling within five as 3:00 flashed on the scoreboard. The Tigers answered, outscoring UAH 15-6 in the closing minutes of play to gain its largest margin of the day, a 14-point, 75-61 lead.
Fighting through a full press as the clock hit triple zeroes, West Alabama secured the 77-65 conference victory.
Wilson led the Tigers on both sides of the ball, scoring a season-high 25 points and posting nine total rebounds. Taylor hit 7-of-13 from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc for a season-high 18 points. Parker also finished with a season-high 13 points, converting 3-of-5 from long range and 100 percent from the line.
Katie Speegle led the Chargers' offense with 15 points, shooting 7-of-15 from the field. Baylee Johnson tallied 14 points, followed by Chandler Elder and Loren Foster, each with 10. Johnson collected eight rebounds, while Speegle finished with three blocks.
The Tigers will continue on the road, facing off against Auburn-Montgomery on Dec. 29. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.
