WILLIAMSBURG, Va. –  Four Seahawks reached double figures, but UNCW fell to William & Mary, 78-55, in Coastal Athletic Association women's basketball action at Kaplan Arena on Friday night.

UNCW dropped to 9-10 and 3-3 in the CAA, while William & Mary improved to 7-10 and 4-2 in the CAA. Freshman Tia Dobson scored a career-high 14 points and recorded four steals and three assists, while Ali Zelaya posted her fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Taylor Henderson and Evan Miller also tallied 10 points in the defeat.

The first quarter featured five lead changes and four ties. Zelaya got the Seahawks off to a fast start by scoring the game's first four points. After trailing 14-10, Zelaya reached double figures and put UNCW up 16-14 with 3:48 left in the opening quarter, which capped off a 6-0 run by the Seahawks. William & Mary quickly responded with a 6-0 run of their own and held the Seahawks scoreless for the remainder of the quarter to regain a four-point lead.

William & Mary increased its lead to 27-18 in the first two and a half minutes of the second quarter, prompting UNCW Head Coach Nicole Woods to call a timeout. The Tribe never looked back and took a commanding 47-28 lead into the halftime break, outscoring the Seahawks 27-12 in the second. William & Mary held UNCW to shooting 4-of-17 from the field in the quarter. 

In the opening half, the Tribe shot 5-of-11 from beyond the arc while holding UNCW to 0-of-9 from downtown. William & Mary scored 22 bench points in the first half, holding UNCW to just four. The Tribe also forced 10 turnovers and had a decisive advantage at the break in points in the paint, 24-14. Zelaya paced the Seahawks with 10 points at the half, while Dobson added eight. 

Despite a spirited effort in the second half, the Seahawks could not match the offensive output from William & Mary. The Tribe shot 47% from the field while holding UNCW to 34% in the contest. William and Mary outscored UNCW in bench points, 43-14, and forced 20 turnovers. The Tribe also had a 36-28 advantage in points in the paint.

UP NEXT

UNCW travels to Hampton to take on the Pirates at 2 p.m. on Sunday. The teams split the regular-season meetings a season ago. UNCW picked up a win in Wilmington, 77-70.