Huntingdon women’s basketball edges Birmingham-Southern

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Huntingdon junior Pat Pickens sank two free throws with 1:02 to play and Birmingham-Southern missed two shots in the final minute as the Lady Hawks picked up a 58-57 win at Bill Battle Coliseum on Monday.

Pickens' free throws capped a game that saw Huntingdon (4-0) build a 17-point lead in the first half and Birmingham-Southern (4-4) rally from a 14-point deficit in the second half. In the final 11 minutes of the game, neither team led by more than three points.

"This wasn't a pretty win, but it was a win and we'll take it," Huntingdon head women's basketball coach Buzz Phillips said. "This was our first game in more than a week and it was just their second game in two weeks. Neither team was as sharp as they wanted to be. Just look at the turnovers, we had 27 and they had 26.

"But our girls battled and we found a way to win. Our girls have been in big games and close games before, and we know you just have to play hard and have fun. We're happy to be 4-0 going into Christmas and we're going to keep working to get better as we move forward."

Junior Eisha Person led Huntingdon with a season-high 18 points, six rebounds and three steals. Freshman Mackenzie Garmany scored in double figures for the fourth time in as many games, finishing with 13 points.

Junior Tan Munford matched her season-high with 15 rebounds and also had four steals. Senior Jodie Thomas also matched a season-high with 10 rebounds.

Huntingdon returns to action on Dec. 30 at home against Point University. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.