Box Score JACKSON, Miss.- The Belhaven women's basketball team (9-13, 3-9) took the court versus William Carey in Southern States Athletic Conference play, holding on for a 63-60 victory at Rugg Arena Saturday afternoon. With the loss, the Crusaders dropped to 4-11 overall, including a 3-9 mark in the SSAC.

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The Blazers were able to get back on the right track after dropping five consecutive SSAC matches, and the game proved to be tightly contested for its entirety. The first half of play saw runs by both the Blazers and the Crusaders, and the home team trailed 30-29 at the half.

The Western Division rivalry game saw 11 lead changes and seven ties, as momentum bounced back and forth between the two sides. Freshman Ariel Wilson came out of the gate firing on all cylinders, leading all scorers with 24 points. Wilson shot 53% from the field and a team high 50% from behind the arc.

Wilson provided a huge offensive spark, connecting on a pull up jumper to give the Blazers a three-point lead with 1:08 remaining. Senior Erika LeFlore added 15 points of her own, while leading the team with nine rebounds. She finished her night one rebound shy of a double-double.

TaShayla Steede returned to action for Belhaven and was a dominant presence in the paint. Steede dropped in 11 points and five rebounds in her return to the floor. She also shot 80% from the field.

The Blazers out-rebounded the Crusaders on the glass 37-26 with nine of those boards resulting in 12 second-chance points in the paint. Both the Blazers and Crusaders recorded 28 points each in the paint.

William Carey was paced by Ciera Sibley with 25 points thanks to 11 of 13 shooting from the field. Erin Holifield was the only other double digit scorer, finishing the day with 10 points. Tiffany Sims added nine points and pulled down a team high seven rebounds.

Belhaven returns to action on Thursday, when the team travels to New Orleans to take on SSAC foe Loyola University. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 PM.