H. AUSTILL PHARR GYMNASIUM, MOBILE, Ala. - Coming off back-to-back conference losses, the University of Mobile Women's Basketball team returned to action in Pharr Gymnasium on Thursday evening, Jan. 12 and hosted conference rival William Carey for the first meeting of the 2022-23 season. William Carey entered as the favorite over Mobile on Thursday, tallying an 11-3 record on the year while riding a six-game win streak, while Mobile has put together a 7-10 start to the season. However, Mobile looked like the better team on their home floor against William Carey and managed to defeat the Crusaders, 64-61.
The big win for the Rams puts Mobile's conference record back at .500 at 4-4 on the season, while advancing the overall record to 8-10. The team is now 6-2 this season in Pharr Gymnasium.
Mobile Halts Crusaders' Momentum
Following a first quarter that saw William Carey lead by five, Mobile answered back in the second quarter with 21 points in the final 10 minutes of the first half. Erica Jones had a monster second quarter for the Rams offensively, scoring 12 points. Meanwhile, the Mobile defense slowed down the Crusaders' offensive surge, including that of former Ram McKinely Seal who scored eight points in the first quarter alone. In the second quarter, Seal was held to just four points, while William Carey as a team scored 13. Following the big second quarter, Mobile had a three-point advantage at halftime with the score sitting at 31-28.
In the second half, William Carey quickly came out and took the lead back by one through the first two minutes of the third quarter, but Mobile answered right back and regained the lead with a jump shot made by MacKenzie White. From there, the Rams led for the rest of the game as the second half proved to be a very even half offensively between the two rivals. In the third quarter, both teams finished by scoring 16 points each, while both teams scored 17 points each in the fourth. Mobile came away victorious 64-61, snapping William Carey's six-game winning streak.
Erica Jones led all players in the game with a career-high 24 points. Jones, who is in her third season with Mobile, set a previous career-high last season with 23 points, with her previous season-high being 21 points on two different occasions this year. She continues to lead Mobile in offense this season by averaging 13.7 points per contest.
Claire Worth followed Jones on the offensive side, tallying 11 points in the win, while mixing in three rebounds and three steals. As a team, Mobile came away with eight steals in the game, with Cosette Balmy matching Worth with a team-hight three takeaways. Balmy led the Rams with eight rebounds on Thursday, finishing with six points.
As an offensive unit, the Rams put together a 39.6% shooting line and went 18-for-29 from the free throw line, good for 62%. For the Crusaders, William Carey only managed to shoot 37% from the field. Mobile out-rebounded the Crusaders, 31-27.
Heading North
Coming off the big Thursday win, Mobile looks to build momentum on Saturday as the Rams return to action in Blue Mountain, Miss. Mobile will face Blue Mountain Christian University, formerly known as Blue Mountain College, at 12:00 p.m. CT on Jan. 14.
About the University of Mobile
The University of Mobile is a Christ-centered liberal arts and sciences institution with a vision of higher education for a higher purpose, founded to honor God by equipping students for their future professions through rigorous academic preparation and spiritual transformation. Core values are: Christ-Centered, Academically-Focused, Student-Devoted and Distinctively-Driven. The university offers on-campus and online bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in over 75 academic programs. Founded in 1961, the University of Mobile is affiliated with the Alabama Baptist State Convention and is located 10 miles north of Mobile, Alabama on a campus of over 880 acres.
For information about the University of Mobile, areas of study, admissions and more, visit umobile.edu, connect with UM on social media @univofmobile, or call Enrollment Services at 1.800.WIN.RAMS or 251.442.2222.
