MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The UT Southern Firehawks built an early lead and stayed within striking distance late, but No. 22 Faulkner pulled away in the second half for a 56–45 win in Thursday night's SSAC opener at Tine Davis Gymnasium.
Faulkner opened the game with an 8–0 run, but the Firehawks responded with a strong finish to the first quarter. UT Southern took its first lead, 11–10, on a Taya Totten jumper, then Ansley Burleson's three-pointer in the final seconds made it 14–10.
The Firehawks extended their advantage to six early in the second quarter when Abbilyn Teter scored on a fast break. Faulkner chipped away, eventually moving in front, and the teams traded the lead before Faulkner took a 26–25 edge into halftime.
UT Southern briefly moved ahead again early in the third quarter, but Faulkner answered with a scoring run to create separation. The Firehawks cut into the margin, but a Faulkner three-pointer at the buzzer made it 41–34 heading into the fourth.
A Ramie Reid layup brought UT Southern within three, 41–38, early in the final period. Faulkner responded with consecutive three-pointers to stretch the lead to nine, then maintained its cushion the rest of the way.
Lauren Smith and Teter led the Firehawks with 12 points apiece, and Reid added nine. UT Southern shot 30.4 percent from the field and made two of 17 three-point attempts. Faulkner made nine three-pointers and shot 38.6 percent overall.
The loss moved UT Southern to 2–4 overall and 0–1 in SSAC play. Faulkner improved to 5–0 and 1–0 in the conference.
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