VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State women's basketball team got back on the winning track with a 68-63 victory on Saturday over visiting West Alabama at The Complex for Hall of Fame Weekend and Lady Blazer Basketball Alumni Weekend.  Lady Blazer junior Aryana Hicks had a game-high 19 points with 12 assists and six rebounds leading four Lady Blazers in double figures.  
 
VSU inducted its 28^th Class into the Athletic Hall of Fame with a brunch Saturday morning and including in this year's class was former women's basketball standout Brittany Ferguson Bell who played for the Lady Blazers from 2010-2012.  She became the 20^th Lady Blazer women's basketball player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.   Ferguson Bell earned Women's Basketball Coaches Association All-America honors in 2012, while she averaged 16.7 points and 8.8 rebounds per game earning first team all-region honors and first team all-GSC honors that season.  For her career, she played in 57 games with 54 starts, scoring 820 points and registered 484 rebounds in two seasons. 
 
Along with Ferguson Bell, the class included; Pat and Ron Bezona (Contributors, 1982-Present), Caitlyn Calhoun (Softball, 2013-2016), Mike Crain (Men's Basketball, 2003-2007), Stanley Flanders (Football, 1993-94), June Munford (Baseball, 1983-84), Gary Slaton (Men's Cross Country, 1975-1976) and the 2018 NCAA Division II National Champion Blazer Football Team.  All of the Hall of Fame inductees were also introduced at halftime of the women's game. 
 
The Lady Blazer women's basketball team held its Alumni Weekend and 2024-25 marks the 50^th Anniversary of the program which began with Lyndal Worth leading the team in 1974-75 and guided the Lady Blazers to the GAIAW Division I championships in 1977 and 1978, GAIAW Division I runner-up finishes in 1976 and 1979, along with AIAW South Region titles in 1978 and 1979.  Worth finished 142-62 (.696) in seven seasons coaching VSU's first All-America selections in Carol Chason (1979) and Susan Taylor (1978-79).  A large contingent of former Lady Blazer women's basketball players were on hand for Alumni Weekend.  
 
Hicks finished 8 of 12 from the field and went 3 of 6 from the line with six rebounds, the 12 assists and two steals and no turnovers as VSU improved to 11-7 overall and 6-6 in Gulf South Conference play.  Senior Kiersten Nelson finished with 14 points and eight rebounds on 7 of 13 from the field with two blocks, while senior Jacey Justice added 11 points off the bench and senior Victoria Ikenasio added ten points and five rebounds.  VSU shot 46.6 percent from the field on 27 of 58 from the floor, while going 6 of 18 from distance and 8 of 12 from the line.  
 
VSU held UWA to 39 percent from the field on 23 of 59, while the Tigers were 3 of 14 from distance and stayed close in the contest, going 14 of 22 from the line.  Shayla Golden had a team-high 18 points on 7 of 13 form the field and finished with ten rebounds, while Kendall Lacoste added 16 points with three triples and Callie Cowan added 12 points and nine rebounds as UWA fell to 2-14 overall and 2-10 in league play.  
 
The Lady Blazers and Tigers both saw a combined five fouls through the first two minutes and change of the game for a 3-3 score with 7:36 to play.  Ikenasio hit a jumper off her own rebound for a 5-3 lead with 5:36 left in the opening frame.  Justice later pushed the lead to 8-5 with a corner triple and then Hicks scored inside on a nice driving layup for a 10-5 score with 2:44 to play in the quarter.  The Lady Blazers then ended the quarter on a 7-2 run in the final 1:19 with a bucket from Nelson, layup from Hicks and a triple at the buzzer from senior Jillian Schenk for a 17-10 lead through ten minutes.
 
VSU scored the first four points of the second quarter, stretching the run to 11-2 and a 21-10 lead with 8:14 remaining in the half.  UWA ended the run with an "and one" from Golden, but Nelson scored inside off a nice dish from Hicks and then Schenk dialed long distance, once again, for a 26-15 score and 6:45 to play in the half.  Nelson hit a step back jumper beginning an 8-0 run for a 34-19 lead with 3:06 to play in the half.  Schenk then drained her third triple of the half for a 39-22 lead with 1:22 to play as VSU went on for a 39-26 lead through 20 minutes.
 
For the half, VSU shot 48.5 percent on 16 of 33 from the field, while it was 4 of 12 from deep and 3 of 4 from the line.  The Lady Blazer "D" held UWA to 9 of 27 from the field, while the Tigers were 0 of 5 from deep and 8 of 12 from the line.  Schenk had a team-high nine points all on triples with four rebounds, while Hicks and Nelson had eight points each.  UWA had four players score six points each in the half and five players score total.  
 
The Tigers opened the second half on a small run, pulling within seven at 41-34 with a hoop-and-harm for Golden with 7:41 to play in the third.  Nelson later scored her 12^th point of the game with Hicks' eighth dime for a 45-36 score with 6:04 to play in the quarter.  Out of a media timeout, Lacoste scored the "and one" for a 45-41 score, but Hicks hit her ninth and tenth points of the game on charity tosses at the other end for a 47-41 score with 4:18 remaining in the quarter.  Lacoste then pulled the Tigers within three at 47-44 with her 13^th point, but Hicks answered, once again, at the other end to push the lead back to five at 49-44.  UWA's Kaedre Denson pulled the Tigers within one at 53-52 with 1:19 to play in the quarter for the score through three frames.  The Tigers outscored VSU 26-14 in the quarter.  UWA shot 10 of 17 from the field for the frame, while VSU was just 5 of 14.  The Tigers were 2 of 3 from distance for the quarter and VSU was 0 of 3.  Both teams made four free throws in the frame.
 
Nelson scored 17 seconds into the fourth for a 55-52 score marking the first bucket for VSU since the 1:58 mark in the third quarter.  UWA would tie the game at 55 with a triple from Lacoste with 7:38 to play for the Tigers' first bucket since the 1:19 mark in the third quarter.  Hicks had the answer for her 16^th point and a 57-55 lead with 6:18 to go.  The Tigers tied the game at 57 and then forced a steal and foul with 4:57 to play.  Ikenasio came up with a big bucket for a 59-57 score and then she pulled down a rebound following a UWA miss and Justice buried her second triple of the game for a 62-57 lead with 3:48 to play. 
 
Justice continued the hot hand and drained her third from downtown for a 65-59 score with 1:59 to play.  Golden pulled UWA within 65-53 on a steal and score off the inbounds play, but Hicks was on the receiving end of an outlet pass for a 67-63 score with 1:20 to play.  UWA's Sydney Schwallie had a good look with 51 seconds to play, but Hicks came up with her fifth rebound and timeout with 44 ticks remaining.  
 
VSU advanced the ball on the timeout, but missed two free throws.  The Tigers missed a triple from Cowan and Hicks then made one of two free throws for a 68-63 lead with seven seconds to play for the final margin.
 
The Lady Blazers host Alabama Huntsville on Monday at 3:30 p.m. at The Complex as the game was moved to Monday from this past Thursday due to Winter Storm Enzo.  Check back with vstateblazers.com for links to live stats, radio and audio/video streaming of the game Monday afternoon.