BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The top-seeded and No. 2/6-ranked Valdosta State women's basketball team will battle No. 3 Lee University Sunday at 1 p.m. ET in the Gulf South Conference Women's Basketball Championship at the Pete Hanna Center on the campus of Samford University. 
 
Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming, ticket information and more at vstateblazers.com on the women's basketball schedule page.  The game will be broadcast in Valdosta on the radio on 94.3 WJEM Fox Sports Valdosta and www.foxsportsvaldosta.com with Mike Chason having the call.  
 
The Lady Blazers (28-2) used a 17-0 run in the second quarter and never looked back for a 79-55 victory over No. 4-seed Auburn Montgomery (20-10) Saturday afternoon in the GSC Semifinals.  Lee (21-9) upset No. 2-seed Union (29-3), 68-66 in the second semifinal as the Lady Flames battled back from trailing double-digits in the third quarter, outscoring Union 27-12 in the fourth quarter for the victory. Along with VSU's two wins over Union, Lee is the only other team to defeat the Lady Bulldogs this season.
 
In the first semifinal game, VSU had five players in double figures led by 16 points from both senior Emma Martin and junior Kalifa Ford.  Martin was deadly from downtown Saturday, going 4 of 7 from distance and 5 of 12 from the field, while Ford was 6 of 12 from the field and 4 of 6 from the line.  Senior Aleisha Curry had a double-double, her first of the season, with 14 points and ten rebounds, going 6 of 7 from the field and 2 of 2 from the line, while senior Tamiya Francis added 12 points on 5 of 8 shooting with two triples and senior Taylor Searcey added 11 points with one triple and 4 of 4 from the line, along with six rebounds, five assists and five steals.  
 
VSU shot 28 of 64 from the field for 43.8 percent, while the team was 8 of 18 from distance and 15 of 20 from the line.  VSU registered 46 rebounds, including 18 offensive rebounds leading, holding AUM to 21 rebounds and just two on the offensive end for the Warhawks and a 14-0 lead in second chance points.  VSU held a 19-8 lead in points off turnovers as the Lady Blazers forced 13 miscues by the Warhawks to 11 for VSU. 
 
The Lady Blazer defense held AUM to just 35 points over the final three quarters and just seven points in the second quarter as the Warhawks shot 38 percent from the field on 19 of 50 from the floor, while going 7 of 24 from distance and 10 of 11 from the line for the game.  Grace O'Gara had a game-high 17 points on 6 of 11 from the field, 4 of 7 from deep and 1 of 1 from the line, while Allasha Dudley had 16 points and Jamya Tyus added 10 points off the bench.
 
VSU head coach Deandra Schirmer won her 112^th game of her career as she improved to 112-30 over her five seasons at VSU, while the Lady Blazers improved to 26-28 all-time in the GSC postseason tournament in 32 years.  The Lady Blazers improved to 9-10 all-time in the semifinals and will make their ninth appearance in the conference finals on Sunday (3-5).  

This will be a rematch of the 2019 GSC final where Lee won 81-73 as VSU upset top-seeded Union 68-62 in the quarterfinals that season.  VSU is 1-4 against Lee in the GSC postseason tournament as this will mark the fourth-straight year they have met in the tournament and the first time in the final since 2019.  VSU's lone win in the tournament against Lee came in the semifinals in 2017, 64-61, as VSU went on for a 91-79 victory over West Florida in the championship for the third league title in program history.
 
The Lady Flames trailed Union Saturday 31-26 at halftime and erased the deficit with a 7-2 run to start the second half for a 33-33 score, but Union closed the quarter on a 21-8 run for a 54-41 lead through three frames.  Lee made 10 of 14 buckets in the fourth quarter and was 4 of 4 from beyond the arc, while holding Union to just 4 of 14 from the field and 1 of 6 from distance for the quarter.  Lee's Mallory Hampton had 21 points for the game and 11 rebounds, while Haley Johnson added 20 points.  Lee finished 25 of 56 from the field for 44.6 percent, while it was 5 of 24 from deep and 13 of 15 from the line.  The Lady Flames held Union to just 21 of 59 from the field for 35.6 percent, while the Lady Bulldogs were 9 of 32 from deep and 15 of 19 from the line.  Lee had not held the lead since the first quarter and took the lead on a layup from Johnson with 10 seconds remaining to seal the upset.
 
VSU has won a nation's best 25-straight games dating back to a 59-53 loss in the GSC-opener on Nov. 25 at Lee.  In that game, senior Lili Long had a team-high 14 points, while Searcey added 12 and Curry had ten off the bench.  Hampton had a game-high 23 points for Lee in a game that saw seven ties and 11 lead changes.  A total of 25 turnovers proved costly for VSU.  The Lady Blazers then returned the favor in an 80-50 route of Lee in Valdosta on Jan. 20 in one of the most complete performances of the season for VSU.  The Lady Blazers raced out to a staggering 24-4 lead through the first quarter and kept the momentum throughout in the most lopsided margin in series history.  Curry had a team-high 18 points on 3 of 3 from the field and 12 of 12 from the line leading four players in double figures.  Hampton had 15 points for Lee, who was held to 31.8 percent from the field on 14 of 44, while the Lady Flames were 3 of 21 from deep and 19 of 25 from the line. 
 
The 25 victories now are the third-most in GSC history behind 28 from Delta State (1989-90) and 33 from DSU in 2007-08.  VSU's 23-straight conference victories this season also is second-most behind DSU's 29-straight league wins from 2006-09.  
 
The Lady Blazers opened the 2024 Gulf South Conference Tournament with a thrilling 54-52 victory over No. 8-seed West Georgia on Tuesday evening in The Complex.  VSU scored 15 of the first 18 points highlighted by three, 3-pointers from senior Lili Long, but UWG responded with a 10-2 run as the game was close the rest of the way.  VSU held a 36-29 lead at the break, but the second half the Lady Blazers were held to just five made field goals.  UWG took its first lead at 52-50 with 1:44 to play since it was 1-0 just nine seconds into the contest.  
 
In a wild final minute, Lady Blazer Searcey, who had a team-high 16 points as the only Lady Blazer in double figures, earned the "and one" for a 53-52 lead with 27 seconds to play.  She then had a block with 14 seconds and a huge rebound by Curry who was immediately fouled.  Curry made one of two at the line with 11 seconds left.  UWG had time for one 3-pointer from Katelyn Dunning and Curry had the rebound as time expired for the 54-52 victory.  Searcey finished 5 of 15 from the field, 1 of 5 from deep and 5 of 5 from the line, while recording seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and a career-high six steals.  Curry had nine points and five rebounds.  Despite shooting a season-low, 32.8 percent on 20 of 61 from the field, VSU was able to overcome poor shooting and played solid defense to pull out the victory.  
 
For the GSC Championship thus far, the Lady Blazers are shooting 48 of 125 from the field (.384), while they are 14 of 39 from distance (.359) and 23 of 39 from the line (.793).  VSU is averaging 36.0 rebounds per game and averaging 66.5 points per game.  UWG and AUM have shot .375 from the field on 39 of 104, while the opposition is 10 of 38 (.263) from distance and 19 of 25 from the line (.760).  VSU holds a 5.5 advantage in rebounding (30.5), while allowing 53.5 points per game.  Searcey leads the team in the postseason averaging 13.5 points per game on 8 of 19 from the field (.421), 2 of 6 from deep and 9 of 9 from the line.  Ford is averaging 12.0 points per game and Curry is averaging 11.5, while Martin is at 10.5 points per game with five triples in nine attempts to lead the team.  Curry is averaging a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game, while Searcey has ten assists and 11 steals.  
 
Lee leads the all-time series 15-14 and has won four of the last five.  Along with the win earlier this season, VSU's last victory prior to that came in a 70-44 win in Jackson, Tenn., in the second round of the NCAA South Regional in 2022 as VSU won the regional and advanced to its first Elite Eight since 1984.  VSU holds a 4-3 record in neutral site games.  Schirmer is 7-8 against Lee during her time at VSU.