Jan. 6, 2004

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - After trailing by as many as 12 points in the second half, the Samford women's basketball team fought back to take the lead late, but could not hold on, as the Bulldogs fell in their Ohio Valley Conference-opener to Jacksonville State, 70-68, in Seibert Hall Tuesday evening.

"We were not ready to play in the first half," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "We battled back in the second half, but it was too late. I am very disappointed in the way we played in the first half."

After Samford (6-5, 0-1 OVC) built an early 6-2 lead, Jacksonville State (6-4, 1-0 OVC) went on a 9-0 run to take an 11-6 lead with 13:17 left in the first half on a three-pointer by Heather Shepard. JSU gradually increased its lead throughout the first half, pushing the lead to as much as 14 points at 31-17 and 33-19 late in the half.

In the second half, Samford battled back, but could not catch up until the Bulldogs went on a 10-0 run to take a 68-67 lead with 1:54 left in the game on a three-pointer by Morgan Vickery. JSU buried three free throws, two by Katja Fuess and one by Shepard, in the last 1:29 to seal the 70-68 victory.

Samford was led by freshman forward Alex Munday with 17 points and six rebounds. Freshman Veronica Pike scored a career-high 13 points and tied a Samford record with 11 made free throws in 14 tries. Sophomore guard Chelsee Insell scored 12 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds.

Jacksonville State was led by Shanika Freeman with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Fuess added 14 points for the Gamecocks.

Samford returns to action on Saturday when the Bulldogs travel to Nashville, Tenn., to take on the Tennessee State Lady Tigers. The game is scheduled to tip-off at 5:00 p.m.