Warhawks Fall to Eagles
The Warhawks got off to a slow start in their first conference game of the season, and a slow 3rd quarter offensively doomed ULM as they fell to the Georgia Southern Eagles 65-44. Gabby Cortez got the Warhawks out to an early 5-1 lead with just over 8 minutes left in the first quarter. Unfortunately, that would be the last bucket for ULM until there were 5 seconds remaining in the quarter on a 3 pointer by Lauren Marker. The Eagles went on a 19-0 run before Marker’s 3 made it a 20-8 advantage for the Eagles after the first quarter.
ULM was able to bounce back in the second quarter thanks to a 7-0 run. Gabby Cortez took the game over in the second quarter and scored 13 points for the Warhawks in the first half.
The Warhawks were unable to continue that momentum after halftime, however. Georgia Southern had a 9-0 run during the 3rd quarter as ULM went on another scoring drought of 5 minutes to give the Eagles a 51-31 lead with 3:30 left in the 3rd quarter. ULM was outscored 23-10 in the 3rd to train 37-56 going into the final quarter.
The Warhawks were not able to close the gap in the fourth quarter. ULM struggled to find an answer to the zone of Georgia Southern all night and were unable to keep the Eagles off the offensive boards. Georgia Southern ended the game with 24 offensive rebounds that turned into 15 second chance points. The Eagles out-rebounded the Warhawks 57-37. The Warhawks shot 24.1% from the field in the game, and only 22% in the second half, including 1/12 from 3 in the second half.
On a positive note, Senior Point Guard Journee Beard got her first minutes of the season tonight in the final 2 minutes as she returns from an injury. The Warhawks 0-4, 3-12) return home Saturday as they host the Georgia State Panthers at 2 PM for the first game of a men’s and women’s doubleheader.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: GABBY CORTEZ (15 points, 6 Rebounds)
