Jan. 22, 2007
LIVINGSTON, Ala. - Two nights after losing by 18 points at Montevallo, Dominique Boykins (Houston, Texas/North Shore HS) led the Argonauts with a double-double as West Florida earned a 77-74 win Monday night at Pruitt Hall. West Florida (10-10, 3-2 GSC) won in Livingston for the first time since Feb. 5, 2001. West Alabama (12-6, 2-3) lost their third straight.
With West Florida leading by four with 1:04 remaining in the game, West Alabama's Natonya McWilliams converted two free throws to cut the deficit in half. After Karmeshia Easley (Mobile, Ala./Spring Hill College) made one-of-two free throws, Ashton Washington went coast-to-coast and completed a lay up to cut the West Florida lead to one. After a West Alabama timeout, Elisa Hardy (Nashville, Tenn./Donelson Christian) was fouled and subsequently converted her two free throw attempts to put West Florida back up by three with 14 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, Jessica Thompson's game-tying three-point field goal attempt was no good, but McWilliams grabbed the offensive rebound. Shani Jones three-point attempt with one second remaining was off the mark as West Florida held on for the win.
West Florida opened a 9-4 lead early in the first half, however, the half was very closely contested. Neither team led by more than five points, and the game was tied six times.
With the score tied at 40 with 15:02 remaining in the game, West Florida went on a 13-4 run which was capped by a three-point field goal by Samantha Schlaegel (Port Huron, Mich./Bethune-Cookman). But West Alabama immediately erased West Florida's nine-point lead by going on an 11-2 run as Washington and Thompson each tallied five points during the run. After the Tigers build a three-point advantage at the 6:54 mark, a Schlaegel three-pointer and two free throws by Tiffany Scott (Port St. Lucie, Fla./Seminole CC) gave West Florida a lead they would not relinquish.
Coming off the bench, Boykins recorded her first career double-double with a career-high 26 points and 10 rebounds in 26 minutes. Laura Davis (Spanish Fort, Ala./Univ. of Mobile) added 15 points and four steals, while Schlaegel contributed 13 points. Abena Bosia (Orlando, Fla./Columbus State) pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds, while Scott finished with five steals. Washington led West Alabama with 24 points and eight rebounds.
West Florida will return to the UWF Field House this Saturday against Valdosta State. Tip-off is set for 4:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on AM 1620 and streamlined on sportsjuice.com. Live stats will also be available on the women's basketball page of www.goargos.com.
