ABILENE, Texas - The Belhaven women's basketball team were downed by McMurry, 61-55, on Thursday night at Kimbrell Arena.
The first half of the contest belonged to
Sierra Pittman, who got the Blazers out to an early 4-0 lead on back-to-back jump shots in consecutive possessions.
After the start, the Warhawks was able to tie the contest for the first time at eight after a three-point play with 4:17 left in the period.
McMurry would take the lead from there into the second period, 12-10, but the Warhawks went on a 9-3 run in the first 3:35 of the quarter to push the lead to 21-13.
The Blazers would respond in the final 6:13, finishing the half on a 10-4 run. Six of the final 10 points of the half were from
Courtney Harper, who helped cut the deficit down from nine to two, 25-23. After a jumper in the final minute by MCM, the Blazers trailed 27-23 headed into recess.
Pittman finished the first half with 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field.
In the second half, the Green and Gold was unable to cool off the Warhawks offense. With 3:26 left in the third, McMurry went on a 14-7 run to push the lead to a game-high 11 points. The Green and Gold got the deficit back to single digits with a seven-point deficit, 43-36, through three quarters of play.
In the fourth quarter, the Blazers (3-4) were down 10, 50-40, with 8:25 left in regulation, but the Blazers' fight helped erase an 11-point deficit. In a 7:19 span, BU went on a 14-4 run to tie the contest at 54 with 1:06 remaining.
MCM (3-5) would eventually triumph with a layup and two free throws to push the game to a two-possession game, which would not be enough for the Blazers.
Pittman finished the contest with a game and season-high 22 points, missing her career mark by one point. The Mobile, Ala. native finished 7-for-14 from the field, while dishing out three assists.
Vamikka Smith led the defensive efforts with eight rebounds and two blocks to go along with eight points.
Sham Hunter led the Warhawks with 20 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists. Haley Welch also totaled 14 points.
The Green and Gold wrap up their Abilene trip with a matchup against Hardin-Simmons on Saturday afternoon. The contest is set for a 1 p.m. tip.
