MACON, Ga. -- The Samford women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 73-66 Southern Conference road battle at Mercer Saturday afternoon at Hawkins Arena.
"We knew it was going to be a game of runs," Samford head coach Carley Kuhns said. "They're a very good basketball team and they play so well at home. I thought down the stretch they rebounded the ball well and capitalized on a few mistakes for us. I thought offensively we played well enough. We missed a couple of bunnies down the stretch and if they go, maybe it's a different basketball game. We played well enough to win that game, they just hit a couple of big shots down the stretch. We just have to continue to learn and get better and grow from this game."
With the loss, Samford falls to 8-12 overall and 3-3 in Southern Conference play. Mercer improves to 13-6 overall and 6-1 in league contests.
Samford was led in the game by Natalie Armstrong with 13 points and 14 rebounds. Annie Ramil also scored 13 points, making 6-of-8 shots from the floor. Sussy Ngulefac had 11 points, while Sanna Redmond added 10 points for the Bulldogs.
Mercer was led by Erin Houpt with 25 points. Amoria Neal-Tysor added 12 points for the Bears.
Mercer took an early 5-2 lead with 7:13 to go in the first quarter following a jumper by Jaron Dougherty. Samford came back to knot the score at 7-7 with 5:25 to go in the period after a layup by Mallory Hampton. The Bears pushed their lead out to 11-7, but a three-pointer by Samford's Armstrong cut the lead to 11-10 with 3:14 left in the quarter. Mercer led, 15-12, at the end of the first quarter.
Mercer pushed its lead to 20-12 with 8:37 to go in the second period after a jumper by Shannon Titus. With Mercer leading, 24-14, Samford went on a 16-2 run to take a 30-26 lead with 1:42 to go in the second quarter after a layup by Ramil. Samford held a 34-33 lead entering halftime.
Samford built its lead to five points at 38-33 with 9:12 to go in the third quarter after a jumper by Redmond. Mercer answered with a 12-2 run to take a 45-40 lead at the 5:47 mark in the third quarter after a three-pointer by Houpt. Samford scored the next five points to tie the score at 45-45 after a layup by Ramil with 4:41 to go in the third period. Mercer then built a seven-point lead at 54-47 with 2:26 to go in the period. The Bears held a 58-50 lead at the end of the third quarter.
The Bulldogs scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter to knot the score at 58-58 with 7:20 remaining after a layup by Redmond. Samford built a 66-63 lead with 4:25 to go after two free throws by Ngulefac. Mercer closed the game on a 10-0 run to pull out the 73-66 win.
Samford will remain on the road for a pair of games next week. The Bulldogs will play at ETSU Feb. 3 at 6 p.m. (CT), and at Chattanooga Feb. 5 at 2 p.m. (CT).
FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS
For the latest news and information on Samford women's basketball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordWomensBasketball (Facebook), @SamfordWBB (Instagram) and @SamfordWBB (Twitter).
