VALDOSTA, Ga. – Behind 31 of 54 points from three players, the Valdosta State women's basketball team posted a 54-44 victory over visiting Montevallo on Saturday afternoon for Senior Day.
With the win, VSU concluded the regular season with a 17-11 record and a 12-10 mark in GSC play as it earned the No. 5-seed in the upcoming Truist Gulf South Conference Championship and will play at No. 4-seed West Florida on Tuesday in the quarterfinal round of the championship at a time to be determined. Check back with vstateblazers.com for more information. Montevallo (11-16, 9-13) will await its postseason fate depending on the outcome of the Mississippi College vs. Delta State contest.
Prior to the game, VSU honored seven seniors playing in their final regular season home game in a Lady Blazer uniform as the 2024-25 senior class included;
Kenya Edelhart,
Victoria Ikenasio,
India Jordan,
Jacey Justice,
Kiersten Nelson,
Jillian Schenk and
Courtney Stothard. VSU would like to wish each of these ladies the best of luck in their future endeavors.
The Lady Blazers shot 37.3 percent for the game on 22 of 59 from the field, while they were 6 of 22 from deep and 4 of 6 from the line. UM was 17 of 48 from the field for 35.4 percent, while it was 5 of 25 from range and 5 of 8 from the line. VSU held a 36-31 lead in rebounding, but forced UM into 24 turnovers leading to a 22-12 advantage in points off turnovers.
Nelson paced the team with 11 points on 4 of 10 from the field and 3 of 4 from the line, while registering six rebounds. Jordan was 4 of 9 from the field and 2 of 6 from distance for ten points, while sophomore
Erin Whalen added ten points with a team-high eight rebounds. UM's Anna Katherine Eastmen finished with 12 points, while Aubrey Sorrells had 11 points and ten rebounds.
The Lady Blazers came out scoring nine of the first 12 points highlighted by a triple from Justice and a pull up jumper after a turnover by Whalen for a 9-3 score with 6:51 left in the first quarter. UM pulled within 9-9 with a 6-0 run, but Whalen scored her second bucket of the game and Ikenasio scored with 55 seconds left off her own rebounded shot and then hit a short jumper in the paint for a 16-9 score through ten minutes.
UM's Savannah Cook hit a triple early in the second for a 16-12 deficit, but Ikenasio scored inside for her sixth point of the game and an 18-12 advantage with 8:04 left in the half. Whalen then stretched the lead to nine at 21-12 with 6:28 to play in the second. VSU extended the run to 28-12 with triples from Whalen and junior
Mary McMorris. The Lady Blazer "D" clamped down and forced UM into its second shot clock violation and McMorris buried her second triple for a 31-12 score. Nelson scored inside for a 33-12 score with 3:22 to play in the half as VSU opened the second quarter with a 17-3 run.
The Falcons responded with two buckets and a triple from Anna Katherine Eastman, pulling within 33-19 with 1:41 left in the half. Another triple from UM, this time from Elisa Saffold, trimmed the VSU lead to 33-22 with 1:09 to play and a timeout by the Lady Blazers with UM in the midst of a 10-0 run. Junior
Aryana Hicks ended the run with 46 seconds remaining in the half as VSU held a 35-22 lead at half.
For the half, VSU shot 14 of 32 from the field for 43.8 percent, while UM was 9 of 20 from the field for 45 percent. The Lady Blazers drained four triples in the first half, while the Falcons had three from downtown. VSU was 3 of 4 from the line and UM was 1 of 2. The Lady Blazers held a 17-13 advantage in rebounding and held a commanding 17-5 advantage in points off turnovers as VSU forced UM into 16 miscues and VSU had just seven turnovers for the half. Nelson and Whalen each had seven points to lead the team, while Eastman had seven points for the Falcons.
UM trimmed the deficit to 36-27 with a triple from Eastman with 6:39 to go in the third, but Jordan answered in kind at the other end for a 39-27 score in what was a slow start offensively by both teams in the second half. Both teams were a combined 5 of 20 from the field with 3:04 to play in the third. McMorris scored following a Falcon miscue for a 43-29 lead with 2:50 to play in the quarter. Jordan pushed the lead to 45-29 with 1:57 to play in the frame following Whalen's eighth rebound of the game. Following a bucket from UM, Jordan drained her second trey of the game for a 48-31 lead and a timeout by the Falcons with 1:01 left in the frame. VSU held a 48-31 lead through three quarters.
UM opened the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run to pull within 50-38 with 5:45 to play and a timeout by the Lady Blazers. Eastman and Julia Susla scored buckets and Aubrey Sorrells hit a triple during the spark for the Falcons. Nelson buried a jumper for 11 points and a 52-40 lead with 3:26 to play and VSU forced the offensive foul on Sorrells leading to Whalen's tenth point and a 54-40 score with 2:34 to go.
Two free throws from Lia Edwards and a bucket from Sorrells trimmed the VSU lead to 54-44 with 1:14 to play for the final margin as the Lady Blazers avenged the earlier season, overtime setback to Montevallo.
