CENTRAL, S.C. – Senior forward Evelina Avleeva tallied her fifth double-double while wearing the Orange & Black and freshman guard Jordan Brewster tallied a career-high 22 points, but a fourth quarter surge by Southern Wesleyan gave the Warriors a 63-59 decision over Auburn Montgomery in women's basketball action on Saturday.
 
NOTES
• AUM falls to 0-8 overall and 0-2 in road games.
• SWU improves to 5-4 on the year with a 2-0 mark at home.
• Today marked the first matchup between the two teams since the 2013-14 season.
• The Warhawks are now 27-4 lifetime against the Warriors.
 
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Avleeva tallied a game and season-high 23 points against SWU, pulling down 11 rebounds (10 defensive) in the contest. Avleeva was 10-of-15 from the floor and 2-2 at the free throw line.
• Brewster tallied a career-best 22 points to go along with a career best three blocks against the Warriors.
• Junior guard Aaliyah Milord pulled down a career-best 11 rebounds to go along with three assists.
• Sophomore guard Makaylla Bullard dished out six assists in the setback.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
• The first quarter saw AUM jump out to an 8-4 lead before the Warriors went on a 5-0 run to go up 9-8 at the 3:56 mark. Avleeva took a pass from Brewster and hit a layup moments later to give AUM back the lead. The two teams traded buckets once again and SWU would hit a layup to take a 13-12 lead into the break.
• AUM started the second on a 6-0 run to go up 18-13 with 6:51 on the clock, capped off by an Avleeva layup. An 11-2 run by the Warriors gave the home team a 24-20 advantage with 4:16 to go until halftime. An 8-2 run by the Warhawks the rest of the way gave AUM a 32-26 lead heading into the half.
• The third quarter saw the two teams trade points back and forth, with AUM going up by nine at 38-29 on a Brewster trey with 8:16 on the clock. SWU would chip away at the Warhawk advantage, tying the game at 41-41 with 3:20 to play. A 12-6 run over the final three minutes of the frame would give the Orange & Black a 53-47 lead heading into the fourth, with Brewster providing the final 3-pointer of the quarter.
• The Warhawks went up 55-47 on another Avleeva layup with 8:42 to go, giving AUM its second largest lead of the contest. Over the next five minutes the Warriors would hold the Warhawks to only two points, scoring 11 of their own to go up 58-57 with 3:18 left on the clock. AUM would not be able to regain the lead the rest of the way, getting outscored 16-6 in the final frame to fall by the final of 63-59.
 
QUOTING THE COACH
"We played hard but once again failed to execute when it really mattered," said head coach Sean Page. "We made more field goals and 3-pointers but only got to the free throw line four times compared to their 23 attempts. We've got to get tougher with our post play."
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
• SWU won the rebounding battle 38-37.
• AUM converted 3-of-4 free throws while the Warriors converted an impressive 17-of-23 trips to the charity stripe.
• The Warhawks committed 14 turnovers while the Warriors committed 11.
• The game featured 12 lead changes and seven tie scores.
 
UP NEXT
The Warhawks will travel to Jackson, Tenn., to take on Gulf South Conference foe #2 Union University on Thursday, Dec. 13. Opening tip is set for 5:30 p.m.
 
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