MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Auburn Montgomery women's basketball team fought hard, but saw an 11-point second-half lead slip away to Valdosta State University in their 55-49 home loss to the Lady Blazers on Saturday, Jan. 26 in Gulf-South-Conference play.
 
NOTES
- With the loss, AUM's record drops to 2-16 overall, and 1-9 in GSC action.
- The Warhawks all-time series record against Valdosta State fall to 0-3.
- Three Warhawks scored in double figures, marking for the fourth time this season that AUM had three players notch double-digits in points.
- The Warhawks led for just over 23 minutes of game time, equivalent to 57.8 percent of the contest.
 
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Jordan Brewster led AUM with 16 points on the day. Brewster also grabbed three rebounds.
- Victoria Morales recorded her second double-double in three games, finishing with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Morales also swatted a season-high four blocks and distributed three assists.
- Evelina Avleeva rounded out the double-digit Warhawk scoring trio, with 10 points on the afternoon. Avleeva also pulled down seven rebounds and blocked three shots.
- Makaylla Bullard added nine points, while Aaliyah Milord recorded seven rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Warhawks and Lady Blazers traded baskets to begin the game, with the score sitting at six-all through the first five minutes and 15 seconds of the game. 
- AUM took the lead at 8-6 on a layup by Avleeva with 3:35 in the quarter, but a 4-0 run by Valdosta down the stretch saw the Lady Blazers lead 10-8 at quarter's end.
- AUM saw their most productive quarter of the game come in the second, outscoring Valdosta State 20-11 in the period. 
- Valdosta upped their lead to 15-7 with the opening bucket of the second, but the Warhawks would reclaim the lead courtesy of an 11-2 run from the 9:40 to the 5:00 minute mark in the period. AUM would finish out the quarter on a 10-4 run to lead 28-21 at halftime.
- AUM took their largest lead of the game on a layup from Morales to put the Warhawks up 32-21 with 8:32 left in the third.
- Leading 43-33 with 2:37 left in the third, the Blazers rattled off a quick 6-0 run to end the quarter and trail AUM by just four at 43-39.
- AUM saw their largest lead of the fourth quarter come on a pair of free throws by Avleeva to put them up 47-39 with 7:11 left. 
- The Warhawks saw their lead slip away over the next three and a half minutes, however, as Valdosta State would go on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 47-47 with 3:51 to go. 
- The Lady Blazers would continue to stay in their offensive groove over the remainder of regulation, finishing off the game on an 8-2 run to seal the deal on their 55-49 win. 
 
QUOTING THE COACH
"I'm super proud of our effort," Head Coach Sean Page said. "Once again, we proved that we can compete with the best teams in the GSC. I thought we were the better team today, but our inability to close out the game let us down again."
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- AUM outshot Valdosta State 38 percent (19-50) to 32.8 percent (19-58).
- The Warhawks held the Lady Blazers to just 15 percent on three-pointers (2-13), their second-lowest total of the season.
- AUM tallied a season high eight blocks in the game.
-The Warhawks were out-rebounded by Valdosta 42-34, despite grabbing 29 defense rebounds, compared to the Lady Blazers' 27. 
- AUM was outscored by Valdosta State 16-6 in the fourth quarter.
- The Warhawks scored 18 points in the paint, while scoring 11 points off of Lady Blazer turnovers.
- Saturday's game featured six lead changes, and six tied scores.
 
UP NEXT
- AUM faces a quick turnaround, as the Warhawks will trek to Pensacola, Fla. on Monday, Jan. 28 for a 5:30 p.m. GSC contest against the University of West Florida. 

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