University of North Florida
South Carolina State
UNF Holds Off S.C. State, 59-55
12/17/2009 8:14:31 PM | Women's Basketball
JACKSONVILLE
Kirkland hit five shots from the field including one three pointer, but connected on 13-of-13 from the free throw line for the Ospreys (2-7). Junior forward Jahken Kerr tallied 11 points and was just one rebound shy of a double-double as she pulled down a career-high nine boards.
The Lady Bulldogs (4-5) were led by Paris Alston with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Sophilia Hipps added 11 points and eight boards.
“We worked on changing our mindset a bit this week,” said UNF head coach Mary Tappmeyer. “We wanted to be more mentally tough and I really think that helped us down the stretch. I was proud of our effort on the defensive side, we were able to pack it in a little tighter and we had worked on our half court press and zone this week and it really paid off.”
The first half was back and forth between the two teams. North Florida took a five point, 10-5, at the 10:47 mark off a three pointer by sophomore forward Rachelle Rasley. The Lady Bulldogs responded with a 12-2 run over the next three minutes to take a five point, 17-12 lead with 7:06 left to play in the opening half.
The Ospreys cut the lead down to one (17-16) off a three point from Kerr at 4:55. The two teams were tied at 21 with just under a minute remaining. Whitney Wiley knocked down a jumper with 39 seconds left, but Kerr drained a three pointer with 20 seconds on the clock to send the Ospreys into the locker room with a 24-23 advantage.
UNF extended its lead coming out of the break, going up three off a layup from senior center Shenette Sheffield. SCSU took the lead two minutes later, going up one (27-26) at the 17:42 mark. The two teams traded points over the next several minutes and were tied at 37 with just over 11 minutes remaining.
The Bulldogs took a three point lead, 40-37, with eight minutes to go. UNF responded scoring the next six points to go up three off a layup by Sheffield with 5:24 on the clock. The Ospreys continued their run, taking the largest lead of the game, up seven, 50-43, with just under two minutes remaining. SCSU cut the lead down to three with a 1:15 left, but a layup and a pair of free throws from Kirkland again pushed the Osprey advantage to seven (54-47) with 38 seconds left. Kirkland scored four more free throws while junior guard Juliemay Syquio added a charity shot in the final seconds to secure the win for the Ospreys.
UNF held the slight 46-43 advantage on the boards. SCSU knocked down 28 points in the paint to 20 from the Ospreys. Both teams tallied 16 turnovers.
The Ospreys will face Savannah State on Friday, Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. on the second day of the Osprey Holiday Classic. SSU defeated Jacksonville State, 51-37 in the first game on Thursday.
