The Lee University women’s basketball team lost for just the first time in January with a 66-59 setback at No. 12 Union University Saturday afternoon. The Lady Flames (17-4, 10-3 GSC) had won eight straight entering the game. The Lady Bulldogs (20-1, 13-0 GSC) extended their winning streak to 15.
With their first loss since Dec. 18 and North Alabama’s 66-58 win over Valdosta State, the Lady Flames drop a full game behind UNA (11-2) for third in the conference. Union maintains a two-game lead in the GSC.
Carrie Cheeks led Lee with her fourth double-double of the season.
The senior tallied a team-leading 17 points to go with a game-high 11 rebounds. Lindsey Roddy was 6-for-6 from the free throw line on her way to 11 points.
Taylor Boggess came off the bench to contribute eight points. Erin Walsh recorded seven markers and grabbed six boards, while Abby Bertram had six points and five assists in the loss.
“It was a typical game between us,” said Lee head coach Marty Rowe. “We both play at a very high level. We were right there, but just could not get any closer than a couple possessions. We were able to defend everything they did, except for the final 10 seconds of the shot clock.”
Union was led by Chelsey Shumpert and Jada Perkins. Shumpert made 10-of-20 from the field and was 11-for-14 from the charity stripe to finish with a game-high 33 points. Perkins scored seven of her 16 points at the free throw line. She also added seven steals, six assists and four rebounds.
Union made 19-of-46 (.413) from the floor and were 5-for-20 from behind the arc. The Lady Flames made 37.5-percent (21-of-56) overall and went 8-for-22 (.364) from distance. The Lady Bulldogs held a huge advantage at the free throw line after converting 23-of-27 (.852) attempts, while Lee converted all nine of its opportunities.
Lee outrebounded their hosts by a 32-23 margin and turned 10 offensive rebounds into 10 second-chance points. Union used four offensive boards to record eight second-chance points.
“Our execution was poor at times,” admitted Rowe. “We turned it over a lot and many times they were lazy, unforced turnovers that need to stop.”
Union scored 20 points off 20 Lee turnovers. The Lady Flames turned Union’s 11 floor mistakes into four points.
“We need to continue to try to play better,” added Rowe. “We’re going to need to be more consistent with our execution, focus and urgency. There are 10 teams still playing to get into the GSC Tournament, so all those teams are going to give you their best.”
The Lady Flames return to action on Thursday (Feb. 1) with the third of four consecutive games on the road. Lee travels to Pensacola, Fla., to battle West Florida at 5:30 p.m. EST.