VALDOSTA, Ga. – Behind 22 points from graduate student Kwajelin Farrar and 20 points from sophomore Tamiya Francis, the No. 18 Valdosta State women's basketball team responded nicely with an 81-54 victory over West Florida Saturday afternoon at The Complex.
 
Farrar finished 10 of 13 from the field and 2 of 3 from the line for her third 20-plus point game of the season.  She pulled down four rebounds with one assist and two steals.  Francis scored a season-high 20 points on 7 of 10 from the field, 4 of 6 from beyond the arc and 2 of 2 from the line.  She had two rebounds and five assists.  Graduate student Delaney Bernard added ten points with two triples and freshman India Jordan scored ten points off the bench.  Saturday's game marked the first time this season the Lady Blazers had two players score 20 or more points in the same game.  Graduate student Mallory O'Dell recorded seven points and a season-high 14 rebounds.
 
As a team, the Lady Blazers shot 55.6 percent on 30 of 54 from the field, while they were 7 of 17 from beyond the arc and went 14 of 19 from the line. VSU held a 34-25 lead in rebounding as it marked just the third time this season UWF was out rebounded in a game.  VSU forced UWF into 15 turnovers, leading to a 15-9 lead in points off turnovers.  
 
VSU improved to 15-4 overall and 10-2 in Gulf South Conference play, while UWF fell to 14-5 overall and 8-4 in league play.  The Argos were led by 12 points from Jaclyn Jarnot as she was 4 of 11 from the field, 2 of 5 from deep and 2 of 2 from the line.  VSU held Jarnot, who entered averaging 16.8 points and 13.4 rebounds per game, to just three rebounds for the game.  Zoe Piller and Rafaella Piassa each had nine points.  The Argos shot 18 of 49 from the field (36.7%) while they were 5 of 19 from deep and 13 of 17 from the line.
 
With the shot clock winding down, Francis buried a triple at the top of the arc for a 13-7 lead with four minutes left in the first quarter as both teams began the contest 1 of 2 from beyond the arc.  Jarnot pulled UWF within 13-10 with her second trey of the game.
 
Piller made one free throw then gathered her own rebound and put back, pulling UWF within 16-13 with 37 seconds left in the frame, but a great triple in the corner from graduate student Nicole Heyn gave VSU a 19-13 lead through one quarter.  
 
VSU started the game 7 of 12 from the field for 58.3 percent, while going 2 of 4 from deep and 3 of 4 from the line.  UWF was 4 of 12 from the field and 2 of 7 from beyond the arc, while it also was 3 of 4 at the charity stripe.  The Argos buried a school-record 16, 3-pointers on Tuesday in a victory at Spring Hill College.  
 
Farrar put up a step back jumper in the lane and was fouled for a 23-13 lead with 8:09 left in the half and the largest lead of the game to that point.  Farrar scored on the ensuing VSU possession inside for a 25-13 lead, forcing a timeout by the Argos at the 7:39 mark in the half.  
 
A turnover on the Argos and Farrar's 14^th point of the half pushed the lead to 27-13 with just over seven minutes left in the half.  Farrar scored on two free throws and UWF turned the ball over in the backcourt for a 29-13 VSU lead, stretching the run to 10-0 to start the second quarter.  Off a turnover by UWF, a steal and score in transition by freshman India Jordan, pushed the lead to 31-13 lead with 5:30 left in the half and a 12-0 run to start the quarter and a 15-0 spurt since the closing seconds of the first frame.  
 
Following a turnover on VSU, Charlotte Ellmore scored on a trey for the Argos and a 31-16 score, ending the run with 3:41 left in the half.  Moments later, Farrar ended a 5-0 run by the Argos with a nice post move and score for her 18^th point of the half and a 33-18 score with just over a minute left in the half.  Francis followed with a triple – her second of the half, for a 36-18 score.   Jenna Gallimore scored her first points of the game for UWF as the half ended with VSU leading 36-20.  
 
For the half, VSU shot 51.9 percent on 14 of 27 from the field, while it was 3 of 6 from beyond the arc and 5 of 7 from the line.  VSU held a 17-15 lead in rebounding and forced UWF into 12 turnovers, leading to a 10-5 advantage in points off turnovers.  Individually, Farrar was 8 of 10 from the field for the half and 2 of 3 from the line for 18 points.  Francis added ten points in the half on 4 of 7 from the field and 2 of 4 from deep.
 
The Argos were led by eight points from Jarnot, who entered the game averaging 16.8 points per game and 13.4 rebounds per game.  Jarnot had one rebound the half.  UWF finished the half 7 of 23 from the field (30.4%), while it was 3 of 13 from beyond the arc and 3 of 4 from the line.  
 
Buckets from Farrar and sophomore Lili Long just 1:12 into the second half forced UWF into a timeout as VSU stretched the lead to 40-20.  Piassa scored inside, but graduate student Delaney Bernard answered at the other end for a trey and a 43-22 lead.  A steal by Heyn, score from Farrar and trey from Francis, pushed the lead to 49-22 with 6:20 left in the third and a 10-2 start to the second half.
 
Francis scored inside on a coast-to-coast layup for a 54-24 lead and an 18-4 start to the third quarter for the Lady Blazers.  Heyn made two free throws for a 56-24 lead with 3:49 left in the quarter and two more buckets extended the lead to 60-24 for a 24-4 start to the half. Francis buried a late triple, her fourth of the game, for a 68-28 lead as VSU scored 32 points in the third quarter to UWF's 10.  VSU led 68-30 through three frames.
 
The Argos put together a strong final frame and used a 9-0 run to pull within 80-52 with 1:42 left in the contest as VSU settled for the 81-54 victory.  
 
VSU continues at home next Thursday and Saturday, beginning with Alabama Huntsville at 6 p.m. on Feb. 3, followed by a Feb. 5 matchup with West Alabama at 2 p.m.  Check back with vstateblazers.com on the women's basketball schedule page for more information.