Box Score
JACKSON, Miss. – The Belhaven women's basketball team won their second straight game to climb back to .500 on the season Friday night at the Tougaloo College Classic. The Blazers used lock down defense and timely shots from the outside to block a late rally from Talladega College to win the game 54-50.

Belhaven (5-5) got off to a hot start when senior Sarah Carr hit three straight shots from behind the arch to give the Blazers the early 11-2 lead. The Blazers used early aggressiveness on offense to create open opportunities for the sharp-shooter and she kindly obliged with an impressive effort.

The Belhaven lead blossomed to as much as 17 points with the Blazers pushing the tempo on offense and limiting the Lady Tornadoes opportunities on the other end.

The Blazers took a 28-16 lead into the break, which would have been larger if not for a long three-point shot made by Arielle George at the buzzer.

Things did not change much to begin the second half with the Blazers controlling possession of the ball for much of the first ten minutes of the half. Belhaven continued to frustrate the Lady Tornadoes with a hybrid defense that forced off-balance shots and eliminated Talladega's chances at getting second chance points.

Carr continued her solid play in the second half and she finished as Belhaven's leading scorer with 15 on the afternoon.

The Blazers were also spurred on by the rebounding prowess of forward Erika Leflore. Leflore is one of the top offensive rebounders in the NAIA and she showed why with six offensive rebounds and 11 total boards in the game. She also contributed nine points in the winning effort.

Down 17 points, the Lady Tornadoes decided to pick up the defensive pressure as soon as the Blazers would inbound the ball. The full-court press worked to perfection as Talladega (3-6) began to chip away at the hefty Blazer lead.

As the minutes went by, the Lady Tornadoes began to believe that they could possibly come back in this game.
However, Belhaven never allowed the game to get completely out of their control and the four point final score was the least amount of points they led by after their initial burst of points.

Carr led the Belhaven offense with 15 points and was the only Blazer to score in double figures. Leflore, Ashley Wakefield, and Alisha Rayborn all had nine points. Leflore just missed a double double with her team high 11 rebounds. Belhaven made 40 percent of their field goals (18-45) and outrebounded Talladega 32-24.

The Tornadoes were paced by Megan Iloff who led all scorers with 28 points.

The Blazers will look to get revenge on one of their early season losses when they take on cross-town rival Tougaloo at the Dawg Pound in the Kroger Gymnasium Saturday night at 6:00 PM. The Lady Bulldogs used a solid second half effort to take the first matchup at Rugg Arena in mid-November. Fans can hear all the play-by-play on the Blazers Sports Network by clicking here.