Women's Basketball Falls in Overtime

ATHENS, Tenn.- A last-second shot did not fall for the women's basketball team on Saturday, as they fell in overtime 71-70 against the Spartanburg Methodist Lady Pioneers. This was the team's first game of 2026.

Defense was the name of the game in the first quarter as the teams combined for 21 points. Talley Lawson got the Lady Bulldogs on the board with a layup and a three-pointer by Jalaya Lindsey put the game in a 5-5 tie. A jump shot by Courtney Berry and a layup by Jordan White were the remaining points scored by TWU, and the team went into the second quarter trailing 12-9.

Lindsey and White combined to score the first five points of the quarter for the Lady Bulldogs, giving the team a 14-12 advantage early on. Over the next three minutes, the game saw three ties and four lead changes with Camryn Brown giving the team a 23-20 lead on a three-point play in the final lead change of the quarter. The half ended with Tennessee Wesleyan leading 29-27 after a Lawson three-pointer.

Three minutes into the third quarter, Spartanburg Methodist took the lead. The Lady Bulldogs ended the quarter by taking back the lead. Trailing 39-34, TWU scored eight straight points to lead 42-39 to enter the fourth quarter. White and Sloan Carpenter combined to give the team the lead. 

Back-to-back layups by Carpenter put the game in a 45-45 tie with 7:14 remaining. The opponents broke the tie, taking an eight-point advantage on a 55-47 lead. Over the remaining 3:02, baskets by Brown and Howard helped the team tie the game 57-57 at the end of regulation, sending the game to overtime. 

The outcome was looking bleak for the Lady Bulldogs as Spartanburg Methodist scored 10 of the first 12 points of overtime. Back-to-back layups by White and a three-pointer by Leslie Hames brought the team back within three points with 1:30 remaining. Two consecutive baskets by Howard kept the team on a 13-2 run, putting the team ahead 70-69 with 38 seconds left on the clock. After a layup by the opponents gave them the lead, a layup or offensive putback did not fall for Tennessee Wesleyan, as they fell by one point.

Brown led the offense with 19 points.

The Lady Bulldogs (4-9, 3-5 AAC) will be back in action on Wednesday when they host conference foe Reinhardt University at 5:30 p.m.