Box Score The 25th-ranked Loyola Wolf Pack women's basketball team advanced to the SSAC Championship semifinals for the ninth straight season with Wednesday's win over Blue Mountain
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The No. 25 Loyola Wolf Pack advanced to the Southern States Athletic Conference Championship semifinals with ease on Thursday, defeating No. 9-seed Blue Mountain, 90-45, in a quarterfinal matchup in Montgomery, Alabama. The top-seeded Pack will now play No. 4-seed William Carey at 1 p.m. on Friday.
The Wolf Pack led from start to finish, using a 33-point first quarter to jump all over the Lady Toppers. Taylor Thomas scored the game's first bucket, followed by two scores by Kennedy Hansberry to put the Pack up 6-0 in the first two minutes. Tay Cannon got on the board, then Thomas completed an old-fashioned 3-point play to make it a 12-3 lead two minutes later. Sandra Cannady made three shots and Liz Critton added another, pushing the lead to 22-8, then a 3-pointer by Kate Petrovic helped Loyola take a 33-13 lead after 10 minutes of play.
Loyola's defense forced six steals and only allowed Blue Mountain to make five field goals in the opening quarter, and that trend continued in the second quarter. The Wolf Pack scored the first eight points of the second quarter, extending their advantage to 41-13 before allowing the Lady Toppers to score a single point through the first five minutes of the frame. From there, Sydni Tangle hit her second 3-pointer of the quarter and Thomas made her first 3 to help give Loyola a 51-22 lead at the break.
Loyola maintained the 30-plus-point lead in the third quarter, getting two quick scores from Thomas and Hansberry in the opening two minutes. Six different players scored in the third quarter, including Jada Farrell getting her first bucket, and Blue Mountain never could cut the deficit to less than 30.
Farrell scored five points through the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, too, and Tangle added another 3-pointer to give the Pack a 44-point lead, 86-42. MG Lymon also got on the board to give Loyola 11 scorers in the quarterfinal contest.
Pack Facts
Loyola has been on an impressive streak under coach Kellie Kennedy, as this is Loyola's ninth-straight season reaching 20 or more wins.
This is Loyola's largest margin of victory in a conference tournament game since the Wolf Pack joined the SSAC prior to the 2010 season.
The Wolf Pack had three double-digit scorers: Kennedy Hansberry and Taylor Thomas each had 15 while Sandra Cannady had 13.
Hansberry is just one point away from 1,000, as she has scored 999 career points.
Thomas led the team with five steals and four assists, while Tay Cannon led in rebounds with seven.
Sydni Tangle led all bench scorers with nine points, hitting three triples. Cannon, Jazmene McMillan, and Jada Farrell each put up seven points.
SSAC Women's Basketball Championship Schedule
Tickets | Live Stream
Wednesday, Feb. 23
Game 1 | #9 Blue Mountain def. #8 Middle Georgia 67-53
Thursday, Feb. 24
Game 2 | #4 William Carey def. #5 Stillman 63-53
Game 3 | #1 Loyola def. #9 Blue Mountain 90-45
Game 4 | #7 Brewton-Parker def. #2 Faulkner 72-64
Game 5 | #3 Talladega def. #6 Mobile 80-78
Friday, Feb. 25
Game 6 | 1 p.m. | #4 William Carey v. #1 Loyola
Game 7 | 5 p.m. | #7 Brewton-Parker v. #3 Talladega
Saturday, Feb. 26
Championship | 4 p.m. | Winner of Gm 6 v. Winner of Gm 7
You can keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.
