WASHINGTON– The Gallaudet University women's basketball team battled Wilson College throughout Saturday afternoon at the Field House, but the Phoenix pulled away late for a 62-53 win in the United East game.

Wilson (9-9, 3-4 United East) opened the fourth quarter with a 7-1 run over the first five minutes to build its largest lead at 57-44 and never looked back. Gallaudet (3-13, 2-6 United East) struggled to find a shooting rhythm, hitting just 3 of 15 attempts (20 percent) in the quarter. The Bison's bench provided a spark with seven points, but time ran out as the Phoenix closed out the victory.

Gallaudet and Wilson played a close, back-and-forth game, with two ties and three lead changes in the first half.

In the first quarter, the Buff and Blue got off to a hot shooting start, going 8 of 14 (57.1 percent). Gallaudet played strong in the paint with 10 points off and despite Wilson's slow start, the Phoenix stayed even as the quarter ended tied 16-16.

The Phoenix continued to struggle shooting in the second quarter, going 5 of 18 (27.8%), and allowed eight points off turnovers. However, Wilson pulled ahead by scoring eight second-chance points and took a 33-32 lead into halftime.

Gallaudet opened the third quarter on an 8-2 run to take its largest lead of the game at 41-35. The Bison controlled play early in the period, but over the final 2:43 of the quarter, Wilson answered with an 8-0 run that carried into the fourth, giving the Phoenix a 50-44 advantage.

Senior guard Sunita Schmidjorg (Austin, Texas) led Gallaudet with 14 points, passed out five assists, added five rebounds and three steals. Junior guard Seanna Baird (Indianapolis, Ind.) scored 11 points, dished out four assists and recorded four steals. Forward/center first year Natalie Greene (Fresno, Texas) returned to the court for the first time since Dec. 15 and she contributed 13 points and seven rebounds off the bench. First-year forward/center Kayla Debrow (Jacksonville, Fla.) continued with her stellar defense performance as she made four blocks and grabbed six rebounds and added four points.

The Phoenix had three players score in double figures, led by Chelcie Forrester who scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds in the win.

UP NEXT
Gallaudet will next host Trinity Washington University (0-10) this Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 7 p.m. for a non-conference game, weather permitting. Stay tuned to GallaudetBison.com and @GallaudetBison on social media for any schedule announcements.