LaGRANGE, Ga. – The Salisbury University women's basketball team couldn't keep its momentum going for a second straight day in the Peach State, falling to the LaGrange Panthers, 73-56, on Friday afternoon at Mariotti Gym.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After giving up the game's first bucket, Alex Bull put the Sea Gulls on the board with a three-pointer, and Hailey Ader poured in a layup to make it 5-2 within the game's first two minutes. The Panthers netted the next three to take a one-point lead, but an Abby Wilkinson triple swung the lead back to SU, 8-6.
• The teams closed out the first quarter going punch-for-punch. Trailing 14-12 with a minute to go, Emily Dilger chipped in the tying layup, and Tori Rumbaugh knocked down two free throws, giving Salisbury a 16-14 cushion to close out the period.
• Wilkinson hit a pair from the line on the Sea Gulls' first possession of the second quarter, then Ashlynn Burrows answered a LaGrange field goal with one of her own to make it 20-16 at the 9:16 mark.
• From there the Panthers found their rhythm. Britney Chavez's trey set off an 11-0 run over the next minute and a half to make it 27-20 LaGrange. Ader responded with two free throws and Bull broke away for a layup to get SU back within 27-24, but the Panthers kicked it into high gear and closed the half on a 16-5 push, capped by a Gracie Brunel triple that made it 43-29 heading into the break.
• LaGrange strengthened its hold on the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Sea Gulls 26-15. The Panthers reached their high point after an Amanda McLendon foul shot made it a 25-point lead at 69-44 to finish off the third.
• The Sea Gulls saved face by winning the fourth quarter 12-4. Burrows started things off with a three-point play to make it 69-47. Down 73-53 later on, Ainsley Raybold hit one-of-two from the line and Bull sank two more free throws to give the game its final margin of 73-56.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Alex Bull followed up a career game on Thursday with another top performance on Friday, netting a career-high 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including 3-of-6 from three-point range. Bull also hauled in six rebounds over 26 minutes of action.
• Ashlynn Burrows scored nine points (4-of-8) with four rebounds, while Hailey Ader added seven points and six boards.
• Sym Deloatch and Emily Dilger chipped in six points each.
• The Sea Gulls shot 27.8 percent (15-of-54) from the floor and went 22-of-35 (62.9 percent) from the charity stripe.

LaGRANGE GAME NOTES

• Zyhia Johnson scored a game-high 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go along with six rebounds and four steals.
• Gracie Brunel chipped in 11 points with seven boards.
• Britney Chavez contributed nine points, while Breonna Glover added seven.
• The Panthers connected on 41.2 percent (28-of-68) of their field goal attempts and went 11-of-20 (55 percent) at the line.
• LaGrange outrebounded the Sea Gulls 48-41, including 14-11 on the offensive glass.
• The Panthers managed 14 steals and won the turnover battle by three.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls ring in the new year with three straight home games over six days starting on Monday, Jan. 2.
• Salisbury welcomes Franklin & Marshall to town on Monday, followed by home bouts against Lancaster Bible on Wednesday and Cabrini on Saturday.
• Tipoff against the Diplomats on Monday is slated for 1 p.m. with game coverage on the Sea Gull Sports Network (SGSN) beginning at 12:45 p.m.

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Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football, Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse and the Metropolitan Swimming and Diving Conference for men's and women's swimming. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 22 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 188 conference championships and 43 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.