Women’s basketball gets past UT Southern

PULASKI, Tenn. – The Loyola Wolf Pack women's basketball team won its third straight game Saturday afternoon, using a 24-point fourth quarter to close out a 71-63 win over the Tennessee Southern Firehawks. 

After a brief conference road trip, Loyola (7-2, 2-1 SSAC) will return home for a non-conference matchup against Arkansas Baptist, scheduled for Saturday, December 13, at noon in The Den. 

Both teams took turns making big scoring runs in the first quarter, as Loyola quickly went up 8-2 behind baskets from Alissa O'Dell and Caitlin Travis and four points from Chandler Caver, but then UT Southern scored 10 in a row to take the lead at 12-8. The Pack responded well, however, scoring seven straight, with four coming from O'Dell. One more O'Dell layup closed the first quarter, 17-14 in favor of the road team. 

Loyola hit its first two three-pointers of the game early in the second quarter, courtesy of SeQuoia Carroll and Addison Luker. Several more makes inside from O'Dell, Carroll, and Deniya Thornton extended the Wolf Pack advantage to double digits, 31-20 at the 6-minute mark. The speed of the game then ground to a halt, as the rest of the half's scoring mostly came at the charity stripe. Each team shot 10 free throws in the frame, as Travis, Caver, and Jada Washington all contributed. 

Travis got fouled right before the halftime whistle, making one shot at the line to send Loyola into the break with a 39-34 lead. 

UT Southern played well defensively in the third quarter, allowing just eight total Wolf Pack points. The Firehawks took a one-point lead early in the second half, and they grew that advantage to three points, 46-43, with half a minute left in the third. Loyola closed the quarter well, regaining the lead 47-46 with buckets from Caver and Carroll. 

The Pack never lost the lead after taking it late in the third, saving their highest-scoring quarter (24 points) for the fourth. Carroll and Tiarra McPipe both scored within the first two minutes of the frame, then Thornton and Travis combined to score the next 17 points for the Pack to run away with the victory. 
 

Pack Facts

• Caitlin Travis led the Wolf Pack with 19 points, going 6-of-8 from the field while adding eight rebounds and four assists. It was her highest-scoring game of the season. 

• Alissa O'Dell had a double-double in both games on the road trip, collecting 12 points and 10 rebounds Saturday. She also reached the 500-rebound mark for her collegiate career.

• Deniya Thornton filled up the box score with 11 points, four rebounds, six assists, three steals, and a block. She's now seventh on Loyola's career blocks list with 57, tied with Tay Cannon. 

• Off the bench, SeQuoia Carroll logged her fourth consecutive game in double figures, scoring 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting with five boards. 

• Chandler Caver was close to double figures, scoring nine points while going 5-of-6 at the free throw line.