Box Score
Box Score

ELON, N.C. – Down by as many as 10 points early in the game, the Elon University women’s basketball team used its size and offensive proficiency to battle back and claim a 77-61 victory over the Georgia Southern Eagles on Monday night, Jan. 3, inside Alumni Gym.

With the win, Elon improves to 7-5 on the season and 6-1 at home, while evening its record to 2-2 in the Southern Conference. Georgia Southern, who went into tonight’s game riding a four-game winning streak, including two in a row in league play, drops to 5-9 (2-3 SoCon) with the loss.

“We knew coming in that Georgia Southern was hottest team in the league,” said Elon head coach Karen Barefoot. “Our team really battled all night long and demonstrated the physical toughness we needed on the boards and throughout the game."

The Phoenix dominated the Eagles on the glass, 43-28, collecting 11 second-chance points and 32 total points in the paint. After a poor shooting performance in the first half, Elon shot 57.7 percent from the field in the second half and finished the game with a 46.4 percent mark.

After scoring just two points in the first half, sophomore forward Kelsey Evans had a stellar performance in the game’s final 20 minutes to finish with a career-high 20 points. Evans went 6-for-8 from the field and 8-for-10 at the free throw line for the Phoenix, while also recording two blocks and one steal.

Sophomore forward Lei Lei Hairston just missed recording her second career double-double, as the Reidsville, N.C. native finished with eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds in the win.

Sophomore guard Ali Ford was the second Phoenix player to score in double figures, scoring 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field, including a 2-for-7 clip from beyond the arc. Ford also made 4-of-5 from the charity stripe to help Elon shoot 76.9 percent (20-for-26) on the night. Ford has scored in double figures in all 12 games this season and in 30 out of Elon's last 31 games.

Junior guard Tiara Gause pitched in nine points and four assists for the Phoenix, while senior guard Julie Taylor registered eight points on 3-of-6 shooting, including two makes from beyond the arc.

Georgia Southern’s Meredyth Frye tallied a game-high 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting for the Eagles, including a 3-of-7 performance from beyond the arc.

It was all Georgia Southern in the early stages of the game, as the Eagles built up a seven-point advantage after Jamie Navarro drilled a three pointer from the top of the key with 15:49 remaining to put the Phoenix behind, 16-9. Georgia Southern extended its lead to 10 points with 12:22 left after MiMi DuBose connected from well beyond the arc to put Elon down, 22-12, forcing Barefoot to call a timeout.

Taylor helped the Phoenix pull within two points with 3:58 remaining after Kelsey Harris found Taylor for three just in front of the GSU bench on a fastbreak to help make it a 28-26 game. Harris helped Elon cut the deficit to one on the next possession after splitting a pair of free throws to make it a 28-27 game with 3:15 left in the first half. Harris tied a career-high with five assists for the Phoenix in the win.

Taylor helped Elon takes its first lead since early in the game with 2:36 left after Gause found the Columbia, Md. native for three from the top of the key to complete a 14-0 run and make it a 30-28 game.

The Phoenix went into the locker room up four points, 32-28, after Aiesha Harper stripped GSU’s DuBose at midcourt with 1:03 left on the clock and took the ball to the basket for the easy layup.

The maroon and gold shot 36.7 percent from the field in the opening frame, but a total of eight players scored at least two points for Elon, who was led by Taylor’s eight points on 3-of-4 shooting in the first half.

Elon continued its hot shooting in the second half, going on a 15-5 run to take a commanding 47-33 lead with 12:38 remaining in the game after Hairston hit a jumper inside the paint over an Eagle defender.

The Eagles managed to cut Elon’s lead to eight points with 7:22 to play after Navarro connected on her fourth three-pointer of the game from the top of the key to make it a 60-52 game.

But the Phoenix managed to keep the Eagles at arm’s length down the stretch, holding on to a double-digit lead over the final 2:54 of the game to secure the victory and improve to 2-2 in league play this season.

Elon is back in action on Saturday, Jan. 8, when the Phoenix takes on the Samford Bulldogs in Birmingham, Ala.