Lady Hawks rally past Agnes Scott for key GSAC win

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Huntingdon women's basketball team needed a spark Wednesday night.

Hosting Great South Athletic Conference rival Agnes Scott, Huntingdon had played from behind much of the night. But something changed in the final five minutes.

Huntingdon pushed ahead of the Scotties and hung on to win 62-58.

"This was a great win," Huntingdon sophomore Sekal Ousley said. "We went over there two weeks ago and we let them beat us. We didn't play well and they got us. Tonight, we wanted to go about our business.

"We started executing better late in the game and we came together for the win."

This was the second time the two teams have played since Jan. 16. Agnes Scott won the first game by 16 points.

"We left everything on the floor tonight," Huntingdon head coach Buzz Phillips said. "We were down, but the girls never folded. We kept battling and we came back. We hit a couple of big buckets and started rebounding late and that turned the game around.

"This was a big win because they had beaten us earlier in the season. As tight as the conference race is, every win is important."

Huntingdon (12-7, 7-3 GSAC) played from behind for much of the game. Agnes Scott (6-13, 5-7 GSAC) never led by more than six points, but the Scotties led 33-31 at halftime and did not relinquish the lead until the final six minutes of the game.

An Ousley layup with 4:38 to play gave the Lady Hawks a 52-51 lead. Huntingdon would not trail again, but the game was far from over.

A pair of Raven Prater free throws, a LaTerial Williams layup and a Prater layup helped Huntingdon build a 58-53 lead with 2:10 left. But Agnes Scott quickly cut the Lady Hawks' lead to two points. Leading 60-58 with 11 seconds remaining, Morgan Crawford helped seal the game with a pair of free throws.

"We were patient late in the game," Phillips said. "We were running time off, not trying to stall, but taking our time and letting openings develop. LaTerial played an excellent floor game and while Morgan didn't have her best game, but she gave us some strong minutes late in the game.

"Raven didn't have her normal night from the field, but she was able to drive and draw fouls and she hit some key free throws. Jodi (Montalvo) left everything on the court. I think she played as hard as she ever has. And Sekal was a difference maker inside. She's been coming on lately and she had a strong game."

Ousley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds. Williams added 13 points and five rebounds and Prater hit 8-of-10 free throws and finished with 12 points.

Huntingdon returns to action on Saturday with a 1 p.m. game at Maryville (11-6, 7-1 GSAC).