Union Women’s Basketball Falls to Columbia

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Union Commonwealth University's women's basketball team (6-17, 5-11 AAC) fell to Columbia College (12-14, 8-10 AAC) on Saturday afternoon at Porter Gymnasium, 54-68.

Freshman forward Aymanni Wynn and sophomore point guard Emrey Glover paced the Bulldogs with 10 points apiece, each shooting 50% or better from the field.

Senior guard Isis Rodgers delivered a standout defensive effort, finishing with six steals, three assists, four rebounds, and also added in eight points.

Sophomore guard Ella Coffey chipped in nine points and four rebounds, and sophomore center Lindsey Pirkle contributed eight points.

How It Happened

First Quarter: Union Commonwealth 12, Columbia 16

Columbia jumped out to an early lead before the Bulldogs answered with outside shooting from Rodgers and Wynn to pull even midway through the quarter. Columbia responded with a late push, capitalizing off Union turnovers to build an eight-point cushion for the Koalas at the 2:56 mark. The Bulldogs closed the period with a pair of late baskets by freshman forward Kylie Noe and Union headed into the second quarter trailing 16–12. 

Second Quarter: Union Commonwealth 24, Columbia 30

Columbia and Union traded baskets early in the second quarter, with scoring from Glover and freshman guard Aniyah Carter keeping the Bulldogs within reach. Free throws from Pirkle pulled Union within two at the 2:37 mark, but Columbia answered with a 3-pointer and a late layup. Union closed the half with a basket from Rodgers but trailed 30–24 at the break.

Third Quarter: Union Commonwealth 41, Columbia 49

The Koala's scored early, but Union answered behind back to back layups from Pirkle and Coffey to keep pace. The Bulldogs continued to chip away with a Coffey 3-pointer and a Wynn triple, trimming the margin to six late in the period. Columbia closed strong, however, and Union headed into the fourth quarter trailing 49–41.

Fourth Quarter: Union Commonwealth 54, Columbia 68

The fourth quarter opened with a scoreless stretch. Glover then connected within seconds of checking in, igniting a Bulldogs surge that eventually cut the deficit to three at the 6:12 mark behind baskets from junior guard Rachel Smith, Noe and Glover. Following a Columbia timeout, Columbia answered with a 7–0 run to push the margin back to 59–49 with minutes remaining. Despite late scoring from Glover, Union couldn't close the gap as Columbia pulled away for a 68–54 final.

Up Next

The Bulldogs return home for the remainder of the regular season, beginning with a 3:00p.m. matchup against Brenau University on Monday, Feb. 16.