TOWSON, Md. – UNCW women's basketball used a strong second-half surge, soaring past Towson in the third quarter and holding on late in the fourth, to prevail, 72-63, in Coastal Athletic Association action at TU Arena on Sunday afternoon. 

UNCW improved to 13-14 overall and 7-7 in the CAA, while Towson fell to 9-17 on the season and 7-8 in the league. With the victory, the Seahawks recorded their most CAA wins in a season since 2018-19.

Ali Zelaya had a game-high 23 points, shooting 7-of-10 from the field. Zelaya tallied her third 20+ point game of the season and reached double figures for the 12th consecutive game. Kate Hollifield and Jania Hall each added 10 points. 

Both teams traded runs in the first quarter as UNCW grabbed an early 8-2 lead with 6:35 left in the quarter, but the Tigers responded with a 9-2 run to tie the game at 11 heading into the second. The Tigers held the Seahawks to just one field goal on their last 13 attempts in the opening quarter, but UNCW also held Towson scoreless for the final three minutes of the first. The Seahawks had a 14-8 rebound advantage after the opening 10 minutes.

The Seahawks' shooting woes continued in the second quarter as Towson stretched the lead to seven early in the quarter. UNCW regrouped by making four of their last five shots in the quarter, regaining a 25-24 lead, and then tying the game at 27 on a pair of layups by Hall, a Gaithersburg, Md. native, with the second layup being her 1,000th career point. 

Towson ended the first half with a buzzer-beater to take a 29-27 lead into the break. The Tigers shot 12-of-29 (41.4%) from the field in the opening half and 1-of-7 from three-point distance, while UNCW went 9-of-29 (31%) and just 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. 

UNCW started the third quarter with an emphatic 10-2 run, highlighted by two consecutive three-pointers from Zelaya to begin the second half. The Seahawks' offensive outburst in the third quarter resulted in a 10-point lead with 3:38 left in the quarter and a 50-42 lead heading into the fourth.

Six total UNCW players scored in the third as the Seahawks outscored Towson 23-13. UNCW shot 8-of-15 (53.3%) in the third quarter while holding the Tigers to 3-of-16 (18.8%). Towson was also held scoreless for the final 2:45 of the quarter.

Hollifield drained a three-pointer to give UNCW an 11-point lead to begin the fourth, but Towson roared back to cut the deficit to three with 8:25 to play, prompting Head Coach Nicole Woods to call a timeout. After the timeout, Isis Fitch and Evan Miller made mid-range jump shots to increase the Seahawks' lead to seven.

Zelaya re-entered the game with just over four minutes left and with the Seahawks leading by two, 59-57. After missing most of the second half due to foul trouble, Zelaya scored the next seven points for the Seahawks, extending the UNCW lead to 66-59 with 1:21 to play with a clutch three-pointer from the right wing. UNCW held on for the win with clutch free throw shooting down the stretch.

UNCW went 14-of-16 (87.5%) at the charity stripe for the contest and shot 8-of-19 (42%) from three-point range. The Seahawks also had a 24-18 edge in points in the paint in the victory and held Towson to shooting 33% from the field on 67 attempts.

UP NEXT

UNCW returns to Trask Coliseum on Feb. 28 to take on North Carolina A&T. The Aggies are first in the CAA standings with an 11-2 record in league play.