Argos Fall to Goldey-Beacom, 80-74

PENSACOLA, Fla. – The University of West Florida women’s basketball team dropped their second straight game, 80-74, Saturday afternoon to Goldey-Beacom College in the final match-up of the 2010 UWF Thanksgiving Classic. Goldey-Beacom’s Irene Hudson came off the bench to lead all scorers with 23 points.

The game was a back-and-forth affair that featured 17 lead changes and 14 ties. UWF (3-2) led by as many as six points in the game but could not withstand a 13-4 GBC run late in the contest.

Five GBC players scored in double-figures, led by Hudson’s 23-point showcase performance. Jacinda Jones scored 19 points for the Lightning (1-4), while Janae Weldon and Ashley Rosario added 14 and Devonne Richardson scored ten.

Octavia Bearden collected her second double-double in as many nights for the Argonauts, with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Jessica Young paced the home side with 14 points, while Desiree Dotey chipped in 13. Jade Howard finished the game with seven points and eight rebounds.

A day after falling behind 18-2 in a 63-49 loss to Henderson State, West Florida started the battle on the right foot and snatched an early lead. Dotey scored five points in the game’s first two minutes, giving the hosts a quick 9-3 lead. Later, Emily Erland canned a three-pointer at the 15:15 mark to make the UWF lead 14-8.

But the Lightning responded with an 8-2 run later in the half. Hudson drained a pair of free throws with 10:14 left to tied the game, 18-18. Minutes later, after Howard had to sit with her second personal foul, Hudson gave GBC a 23-21 lead on a running lay-up. The Lightning carried a 33-32 lead into the halftime break.

Bearden scored a basket on UWF’s first possession of the 2nd half to swing the lead back to the Argos, and a three-point play from Young made the score 51-47 in favor of the home team with 14:24 to play. But the Lightning came back with five unanswered points, including a three-ball from Jones to make the score 52-51 with 12:34 left.

After swapping the lead three more times, UWF and Goldey-Beacom were tied for the final time at the 6:02 mark, when two free throws from Rosario made the score 62-62. That kicked off the 13-4 Lightning run, which culminated with a pair of Richardson free throws to make the score 75-66 with less than a minute to play. From there, the road team salted the game away at the free throw line and posted an 80-74 win.

West Florida shot 36.4% from the floor, while Goldey-Beacom shot at a 41.8% clip. The difference in the game was the turnover battle. UWF committed 22 giveaway’s to GBC’s 15, and the Lightning converted Argo miscues into 20 points, while the Argos could manage just 14 points off of turnovers.

Arielle Alford added a solid effort to the GBC attack despite going scoreless. She grabbed nine rebounds and blocked eight shots in the game. UWF won the battle of the glass, 47 rebounds to 43.

West Florida will try to stop their two-game skid on Wednesday, when they face Georgia Southwestern in Americus, Ga. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 pm local time.

2010 UWF THANKSGIVING CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
G - Nyesha Adams, Henderson State
G - Jacinda Jones, Goldey-Beacom
G - Janae Weldon, Goldey-Beacom
F - Octavia Bearden, West Florida
F - Hannah DeGraffinreed, USC Aiken
F - Gianna Woods, Henderson State (MVP)

For information on all UWF Athletics, visit www.GoArgos.com.