VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Auburn University at Montgomery women's basketball team dropped a road Gulf South Conference meeting to the Valdosta State Lady Blazers by a score of 77-51 on Saturday afternoon.

NOTES
- The Warhawks fall to 10-9 on the year with a 3-8 conference mark.   
- Valdosta State improves to 14-5 with a 6-5 record in league play.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- A 3-pointer and a strip and score gave the Lady Blazers an early 5-0 lead to start the game but a nice move inside the paint from Catlin Carter got the Warhawks on the board for the first time. Valdosta State would connect on eight-straight points for the second time in the early going to take a 13-2 lead with 6:30 remaining in the first period. A 15-2 run to start the game from VSU was put to rest by a Carter 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 15-5, however the Lady Blazers answered with a 3-pointer of their own on the next possession. Valdosta State's dominance would continue for the rest of the quarter as VSU took a 26-7 lead going into the second quarter.
- Jemaiya Lee was the first Warhawk not named Carter to register a point with a free throw early in the second quarter to run the game to 28-8. The Lady Blazer's sixth 3-pointer of the game gave Valdosta State a 31-8 lead with just over eight minutes remaining in the half. Victoria Morales got on the board midway through the second with a running layup in the paint to get the Orange & Black to double digits. Morales cut the lead to 20 with a 3-pointer before the media timeout, but VSU still led 38-15 going into the media break. The teams would exchange 3-pointer to conclude the half, and the game stood in favor of the Lady Blazers at half time 46-18.
- Two free throws got the Orange & Black on the board early in the second half, but their free shots were matched by two baskets from Valdosta State. The Blazers would go on another run with six minutes to go in the third, taking a 56-23 lead. AUM remained cold, while Valdosta State remained hot to close the third quarter as VSU led 60-32 heading into the fourth quarter.
- Both teams were cold from the field to begin the fourth quarter, but Valdosta State grabbed the first two points of the fourth to push their lead to 30. Alex Brown went to the line and became the eleventh player to score a basket for the Orange & Black in the game. AUM was able to muster some offense in the middle stages of the quarter before the media timeout, but the Lady Blazers still held on to a 62-43 lead. The deficit would prove insurmountable as Valdosta State came away with a 77-51 win.

QUOTING THE COACH
"We can't get off to a start as bad as we did today and expect to win. We continued to fight and won the second half but we can't give teams huge leads and win. The teams in the GSC are too good."

UP NEXT
The Warhawks will return to the AUM Gymnasium on Thursday, Jan. 30 at 6 p.m. to host Gulf South Conference opponent West Florida. The Warhawks defeated the Argos by two points on Jan. 23.     

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