VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State women's basketball team led by as many as seven points in the third quarter, but was unable to hang on as Delta State posted a 66-59 victory Saturday afternoon at The Complex.
 
VSU fell to 12-4 and 4-4 in Gulf South Conference play, while DSU improved to 13-1 and 6-1 in league play as it won its ninth-straight game.  
 
The Lady Blazers led by seven on multiple occasions in the game, and held a 42-35 lead capped with a triple from senior Cheray Saunders with 5:05 left in the third quarter.  DSU responded with a 17-1 run over the next 7:51 of game time for a 52-43 lead with 8:34 left in the contest.  A triple by junior Kayla Bonilla, who led the Lady Blazers with 16 points and four triples, ended the run. 
 
VSU junior Delaney Bernard hit a big triple, pulling VSU within four at 63-59 with 1:29 left, but a layup from Zyaire Ewing on the ensuing possession pushed the lead to six.  Ewing made a free throw late for the 66-59 margin as the bucket from Bernard was the last point for the Lady Blazers in the contest.  
 
Bonilla was 6 of 15 from the field and 4 of 9 from range, while gathering six rebounds and dishing out three assists with one steal.  Saunders finished with 14 points on 5 of 17 from the field, two triples and a team-high eight rebounds, while Bernard had 14 points off the bench, highlighted by four treys.  VSU shot 40 percent for the game on 22 of 55, while going 10 of 23 from range and 5 of 9 from the line.
 
DSU was led by a game-high 23 points from Nia Johnson as she was 7 of 15 from the field and 9 of 11 from the line.  Ewing scored 20 points and pulled down nine rebounds on 7 of 18 from the field and 6 of 8 from the line.  Quantsha Patterson added 10 points and six rebounds.  The Lady Statesmen shot 40.7 percent for the game on 24 of 59, while going 1 of 8 from beyond the arc -all in the first half and 17 of 22 from the line.  The free throw shooting discrepancy proved to be a big difference in the game.  DSU held a 39-33 lead in rebounding and a 14-9 lead on the offensive end.  
 
The Lady Blazers got off to a great start in the game, erasing the bad memories of the tough shooting night on Thursday against Mississippi College.  VSU went 8 of 15 from the field and 3 of 4 from range in the first quarter for a 26-16 lead, and led by four at halftime at 32-28.  VSU shot 13 of 28 from the field for the half, while going 5 of 9 from beyond the arc and just 1 of 2 from the line.  
 
The VSU "D" held the high-powered Lady Statesmen offense to 10 of 30 from beyond the arc, while DSU was 1 of 8 from range and 7 of 9 from the line.  The Lady Blazers and DSU were tied in rebounding, each with 18 as DSU entered averaging nearly 50 rebounds per game.  
 
In the third quarter, DSU used a 6-2 run to begin the frame, but Bernard had the answer with a trey beginning an 8-2 run by the Lady Blazers for the 42-35 lead.  With 1:43 left in the quarter T'Kyra Hicks scored the "and one" for the first DSU lead since the early moments of the game at 44-43.  Ewing hit two free throws moments later for a 46-43 lead as the Lady Statesmen closed the frame on an 11-1 run. 
 
DSU built the lead to as many as nine midway through the fourth, but the Lady Blazers wouldn't go quietly as they mounted the comeback to cut it to four with Bernard's trey with 1:29 left.
 
The Lady Blazers return to action at West Georgia and Shorter next week, before returning home to host Auburn Montgomery for the Hall of Fame Weekend on Jan. 25, 2020, at 2 p.m., in The Complex.  To purchase tickets for the Hall of Fame Ceremony click on the tab to the right of this article.