RADFORD, Va. – The Radford women's basketball team (13-9, 5-2 BSC) saw a double-digit lead evaporate in the fourth quarter, but the Highlanders battled back to defeat UNC Asheville, 64-52, for their fourth-straight win.

KEY STATS

• With their lead cut to one point, Joi Williams drove and converted a three-point play to quell the UNC Ashville rally with 4:51 left. The junior led Radford with 21 points while shooting better than 50 percent (8-15).
• Cate Carlson provided a major boost in the second half, tallying a dozen points in the second half.
• Georgia Simonsen also reached double figures with 10 points. She also led Radford with six rebounds.
• The Highlanders improved to 8-0 when shooting better than 40 percent (41.5%; 22-53). They also converted 16 free throws, the most since the win over Niagara back on November 22 (24).

PLAY BY PLAY
The Bulldogs came out as the aggressor and led 15-12 at the end of the first. Williams hit a deep three from over 25 feet for the Highlanders' first basket to go up 5-2 a couple of minutes in. However, the Bulldogs rallied to go on an 11-3 run and lead by five. Simonsen added her first tally in the last minute of the first quarter, just the fourth basket for the Highlanders in the opening 10 minutes.

The Highlanders continued to force turnovers often in the second quarter and began cashing them in. Anna Stromberg converted on a tough shot through contact to give the Highlanders the lead back at 18-17 with 7:15 left before halftime. Angelina Nice got a bucket to go a few moments later to make it a three-point game, and Williams followed with her second trifecta to make it 25-19. Neither team managed to mount much of a strong finish at the offensive end to end the first half, with Radford taking a four-point advantage into the break.

A quick 6-2 burst, led by Ellie Taylor's nice work in beating the Bulldogs down the floor, forced UNC Asheville to take a quick timeout early in the third quarter. The regroup failed to account for Carlson, who got hot from behind the arc. She cashed a pair from deep to extend Radford's lead to 14 points with 4:41 left in the third. UNC Asheville also found themselves in foul trouble, where Anaiah Jenkins made four of four from the line late in the third chapter. It was Radford ahead 50-36 after three.

UNC Asheville quickly battled their way back from down 17 points to just one, going on a 16-0 run over the course of just over five minutes of action. Needing an answer, Williams drove in, was fouled and made the layup for a three-point play with 4:51 left. The Highlanders then continued to make stops at the defensive end, while Simonsen and Carlson got good looks in the paint to go back up by 10 points with 1:51 remaining. That proved to be enough for the Highlanders to ice away the rest of the game.

McGUIRE QUOTABLE
"I thought Cate's (Carlson) performance was strong," said Head Coach Mike McGuire after the game. "Really on both ends of the floor. I thought offensively, she let the game come to her. She seemed more aggressive to put the ball on the floor and attacking the basket today which was great. I think we need more of that from her. I think teams will continue to try and run her off the three-point line. So, that was good to see. I just love how she's growing defensively too. She's active and getting more deflections and starting to rebound better. Just a well-rounded game by Cate."

UP NEXT
Radford goes back on the road to face the USC Upstate Spartans on Wednesday, January 28 at 7:00 p.m. Catch the action on ESPN+ or follow along with Tom Purvis on WRAD Radford Sports Radio.

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