Blossoms Fall to No. 2 Delta State 80-56
January 19, 2008

MONTICELLO, Arkansas – The No. 2 Delta State Lady Statesmen proved to be too much to handle for the University of Arkansas at Monticello Cotton Blossoms Saturday afternoon, winning their 15th straight game, and staying undefeated with an 80-56 win over UAM.
 
Delta State’s Jennifer Rushing led all scorers in the contest with 17 points after connecting on 5-of-8 field goal attempts, four of which were from beyond the three-point line. Rushing also led the game with six assists.
 
For the Blossoms, freshman Erika Brown (Shreveport, La.) led the team in scoring with 14 points, while also pulling down six rebounds. This is the third time Brown has led the team in scoring this season and second straight time after scoring 16 points at OBU on Thursday night.
 
Hustle paid off for junior Sharlene Murphy (Coldwater, Miss.), as the 5-7 guard finished with a double-double of 12 points and a game-high of 10 rebounds.
 
Senior Gemma Gibson (Dodd City, Texas) rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Blossoms with 10 points. Gibson was 3-of-8 from the field, including a 2-of-5 performance from the three-point line.
 
Brown hit a three-pointer at the 17:23 mark and freshman Janette Thompson (Hot Springs, Ark.) copied Brown with a three at the 15:19 mark in the first half – both gave the Blossoms its largest lead of the game at three points.
 
The Lady Statesmen gained the lead less than a minute later and never looked back, taking a 41-34 lead into the locker room at halftime. The Lady Statesmen shot close to 60 percent from the field in the second half, making it hard for the Blossoms to come from behind to end the Lady Statesmen winning streak.
 
Delta now has won 15 games in a row and improves to 15-0 overall this season, while improving to 3-0 in Gulf South Conference play. The Blossoms drop to 8-8 overall this season, and 1-2 in GSC play.
 
UAM hosts Henderson State on Thursday, Jan. 24 for a GSC contest starting at 5:30 p.m. in the Steelman Fieldhouse. The game can be heard live on the radio at KHBM-FM 93.7, which will be streamed live on the UAM Athletics Website at www.uamsports.com.