Lady Ospreys play well and prevail

Thursday, January 29

Jacksonville, Fla.

7 p.m.

University of North Florida

University of South Carolina - Upstate

Sophomore Juliemay Syquio scored 13 points and had seven assists and steals

1/29/2009 10:20:08 PM | Women's Basketball

UNF knocked off USC Upstate 74-64 Thursday night

By: Adam Jonson, UNF Athletics

Box Score

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Hot hands and dynamic defense boosted the University of North Florida women's basketball team to its highest point total of the season in a 74-64 Atlantic Sun Conference win against USC Upstate at UNF Arena on Thursday night.

“It took a little while for us to develop some chemistry but the team is playing very well and bringing a ton of energy to the court,” UNF head coach Mary Tappmeyer said. “We have some young players and they are beginning to grow up and do some really good things.”

UNF (4-16, 3-8), winners in two of their last three contests, used seven steals by sophomore Juliemay Syquio and two by freshman Brittany Kirkland to score 24 points off 28 Upstate (9-10, 4-7) turnovers.

“Easy scoring opportunities and run-out baskets really get the girls excited and make them want to play the defensive end even more because they want to do it all over again,” Tappmeyer said. “They are seeing the fruits of their labor in that they are finally creating some havoc and turnovers and getting some easy buckets from them.”

The Lady Ospreys notched 10 points in fast-break situations with Syquio and Kirkland dishing the assist on several of the opportunities. With seven assists apiece, Syquio and Kirkland each notched career numbers in the category.

Senior Jennifer Bowen paced UNF in the first half, scoring 13 of her 15 in the first 20 minutes. She connected on two of her three tries from beyond the arc to help the Lady Ospreys wrap up the first frame, which they led by as many as 14 points, with a 33-27 edge.

The Spartans managed to hit only 33.3 percent of shots in the first half, including a 5-for-17 performance from long range. UNF stifled Upstate's third-leading scorer Courtney Hawkins early, holding her scoreless in the opening half when she attempted six field goals, four from downtown.

”Upstate is so good in a half-court set and can pick their opponent apart if they are allowed to get into their offensive groove,” Tappmeyer said. “We kept the press on them and I don't think they really ever got comfortable in their offense.”

The visitors opened the second frame on an 8-1 run to knot the score at 34-34 a little more than three minutes after the break. The game featured seven ties and five lead changes before the Lady Ospreys finally went on top for good at the 5:43 mark. Syquio flushed a pair of free ones to give UNF the 54-53 advantage.

Despite posting a .478 shooting percentage in the second half, the Spartans could not overcome the Lady Ospreys oppressing defense, committing 17 second-half turnovers. UNF scored 17 points off those turnovers in the final frame.

Senior Jennifer Guldager pulled down a season-high 11 rebounds to lead all rebounders and guided the Lady Ospreys with 37 minutes of action. Kirkland scored a team-high 16 points to go along with Syquio's 13 points and six boards. Guldager added six points.

Upstate's Kendra Wallace led all scorers with 19 points and fired true on five of her nine tries from 3-point land. Chelsea McMillan went for 14 points and eight rebounds, connecting on all eight of her attempts from the charity stripe.

The UNF bench stepped up to play significant minutes and net 22 points. Junior Shennette Sheffield led the Lady Ospreys' bench scoring, notching nine in 14 minutes. Freshmen Rachelle Rasley, Kim Baker and Kayla Mobley chipped in 15, 13 and 10 minutes of action, respectively, while sophomore Brittany Jones provided seven high-energy minutes.

“We are playing with a lot of confidence right now,” Tappmeyer said. “The girls boost each other up when things aren't going well and they believe in one another.”

The Lady Ospreys will need to hold on to that confidence and their intensity from Thursday's win when A-Sun frontrunner East Tennessee State visits UNF Arena at 2 p.m. on Saturday.