Lady Indians hand #1 Gulf Coast their first loss, 83-76

MARIANNA, Fla. – The Chipola Lady Indians took down the number one team in the NJCAA D1 Women's Rankings at The Milt on Saturday afternoon. Five players scored in double digits as Chipola defeated #1 Gulf Coast, 83-76, to move to 7-9 overall and 1-2 in Panhandle Conference play.

"Today's win was a great team effort, said head coach Greg Franklin. "We have had some really good practices leading up to the win. I'm extremely proud of the effort they gave today."

The two rivals exchanged the lead five times in the first quarter of player with neither team able to gain an advantage. Chipola was able to outshoot the Lady Commodores 53.8 percent to 41.2 percent but after the first, the score was tied 18-18.

Sophomore Brenda McKinney showed the Lady Commodores that she was going to be a force to be reckoned with early on, going 3-for-3 from the field and hauling in four rebounds in the first ten minutes of play.

The second period of play was much of the same as the two teams once again swapped the lead back and forth. However, with a little over three minutes left to play before intermission, sophomore Ivi Nikolova hit a three from near the top of the key to give the Lady Indians the lead.

From that point on, Chipola never trailed in the game and stretched their lead over the final minutes of the half. With less than a minute remaining, Nikolova hit her second three of the game to put the Lady Indians up 37-28 as both teams went to the locker room.

After the break, the Lady Indians continued to stretch their lead. Nikolova hit her third triple of the game to give her team a 14-point advantage with just under four minutes remaining in the third quarter.

The undefeated Lady Commodores refused to go down without a fight as they battled back with a 12-4 run to close out the third quarter. Chipola held on for a 56-50 lead after the first thirty minutes but momentum was shifting in the direction of the nation's number one team.

"We have been playing really good basketball for 30-35 minutes but haven't put a complete game together," said Franklin.

Fortunately for Franklin, the nation's leading scorer wears a Chipola jersey. Sophomore Ashley Baez scored 11 of her team-leading 19 points in the final ten minutes to help carry the team to the finish line.

With just under three minutes remaining in the game, freshman Tahnyjia Purifoy made a cross-court pass to Ashley Baez in the corner. Baez buried it for three to go up 75-60, the Lady Indians' largest lead of the day.

Gulf Coast did not go away quietly. A furious rally concluding with a pair of deep balls helped cut what appeared to be an insurmountable Chipola lead to just four with less than a minute to play.

The Lady Indians were able to take care of the lead at the free throw line, going 3-for-4 in the final seconds, to bring home the 83-76 win.

Along with Baez's 19 points, McKinney and Nikolova had 17 apiece, followed by Purifoy with 14 and Kaitlyn Bryant with 12.

With one game remaining in the first of three rounds against Panhandle opponents, Franklin hopes the Lady Indians can build off this win.

"Hopefully this gives our team confidence and will lead us into the next game with positive energy."

The Lady Indians will travel to Tallahassee on Saturday for a 1 PM CST tip with the Eagles of TCC. Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ from the Eagledome.

GAME NOTES

• Saturday's game against Gulf Coast was the Lady Indians' fourth consecutive game against top 25 opponents.
• The Lady Indians have not fallen to the Lady Commodores at home since February 19, 2020.
• Head coach Greg Franklin is 20-16 against Gulf Coast in his eleven-year tenure as head coach of the Lady Indians.

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