BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford women's basketball team led for the majority of the first three quarters, but a cold fourth period proved costly in an 81-66 loss to Eastern Kentucky Sunday afternoon in the Pete Hanna Center.
 
"The team that showed up in the first half, that is a new team for us," Samford head coach Carley Kuhns said. "I thought we played hard, disciplined, shared the ball and if we play that way, this team is going to have a chance. I loved the way they showed up to the game, we've just got to put it together for 40 minutes. We, obviously, missed a ton of shots in the fourth quarter, but I thought we got some decent looks, but I've got to do a better job of putting us in a position to get better looks. Because we need the ability to score the ball over 40 minutes."
 
With the loss, Samford fell to 4-11 on the season. Eastern Kentucky improved to 10-3 with the win.
 
For Samford in the loss, Aubrey Blankenship scored a career-high 17 points and grabbed five rebounds. Annie Ramil and Kennedy Langham scored 13 points each, while Emily Bowman added 11 points and seven rebounds.
 
EKU was led by Alice Recanati with 22 points and eight rebounds. Raphaela Toussaint poured in 20 points for the Colonels.
 
Samford jumped out to an early 10-5 lead with 5:58 to go in the first period following a layup by Ramil. Eastern Kentucky came back to take a 17-15 lead with 1:22 remaining in the opening quarter after a layup by Recanati. Samford scored the final five points of the period, giving the Bulldogs a 20-17 lead at the end of the first quarter.
 
The Bulldogs pushed their lead out to 10 points at 32-22 with 6:47 left in the second period after a layup by Alonya Waldon. After EKU cut the lead to eight points at 39-31, Samford scored the next four points to take a 12-point lead to 43-31 with 2:34 left in the second quarter following a layup by Jada Knight. EKU closed the quarter with a 7-0 run to cut the lead to 43-38 heading into the locker room at halftime.
 
Eastern Kentucky cut the lead to one point at 48-47 with 7:15 to play in the third quarter after a three-point play by Toussaint. Samford scored the next four points to push the lead back to five at 52-47 after two Bowman free throws with 6:44 remaining in the third period.
 
The Colonels came back to tie the score at 58-58 with 2:28 to go in the third after a pair of free throws by Toussaint. A three-pointer by Blankenship gave Samford the lead back at 61-58 with 2:24 left in the quarter. EKU came back to take a 63-62 lead at the end of the third quarter.
 
The teams traded baskets early in the fourth quarter. With Samford leading, 66-65, EKU finished the game with a 16-0 run to take the 81-66 win.
 
Samford will next play host to Berry College on Saturday, January 4. The game is set for a 2 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center.




 
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