WILMINGTON, N.C. – Taylor Henderson, Kate Hollifield and Ali Zelaya reached double figures as UNCW women's basketball's late comeback attempt came up short against Elon, 70-56, in Coastal Athletic Association action in Trask Coliseum on Friday night.
Henderson had a team-high 14 points and hauled in seven rebounds and Hollifield added 11, shooting 2-of-4 from three-point range. Zelaya filled the stat sheet with 10 points, a team-high nine rebounds, and a game-high five blocks. Zelaya tied her season-high for blocks in the contest and needs 19 to set the Seahawks' single-season record.
UNCW dropped its third straight game, falling to 12-13 on the season and 6-6 in the CAA, while Elon improved to 13-9 overall and 7-4 in the league.
Elon dominated the first quarter, leading by as many as 14, to take a 22-11 lead into the second. The Phoenix shot 10-of-15 from the field in the opening quarter and held UNCW to shooting 3-of-16, including 1-of-11 to start the game.
The Phoenix extended their lead to 47-29 at the half, shooting 21-of-31 (68%) in the opening 20 minutes, holding UNCW to 10-of-33 from the field. Elon also had a 22-8 advantage in points in the paint at the break. Hollifield paced UNCW with eight points at the half, while Henderson and Finley Lohan added six.
Both teams knocked down five 3-pointers in the first half. Elon shot 71% from 3-point distance while holding UNCW to 38%. The Phoenix came into the game averaging less than four 3-pointers per game, shooting just over 23% from three-point distance on the season.
UNCW responded on the defensive end of the court in the third quarter, outscoring Elon 13-10. The Seahawks held the Phoenix scoreless for the final 2:42 of the third. Corrie McLaughlin tallied all eight of her points in the quarter for the Seahawks.
Trailing by 15 to begin the fourth quarter and as many as 20 in the second half, UNCW cut the deficit to 59-51 with five minutes to play but could not get any closer. Raven Preston had a double-double for Elon, posting game-highs with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
