Women’s basketball captures seventh SSAC Championship Title

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Loyola Wolf Pack women's basketball team completed the sweep of the Southern States Athletic Conference Regular-Season and Championship titles, defeating Mobile, 71-63, on Saturday in the SSAC Championship Final. 
 

It's the second time in program history they've won both SSAC titles, too, also accomplishing that feat during the 2021-22 season. 
 

The two teams traded the lead a few times in the early going, as Taylor Thomas scored the first three points and Cailtin Travis added the next four, 7-6. Mobile scored on back-to-back trips down the floor to take a 10-7 lead, though. Alissa O'Dell stopped that quick Rams run with a baseline jumper, but they scored again, 12-9, with four minutes left in the opening frame. Three free throws by Sandra Cannady and a Travis runner flipped the lead again, 14-12, but Mobile scored the final six points to take an 18-14 lead into the next quarter. 
 

Mobile maintained its lead for the entire second quarter, as it matched every Loyola shot. Thomas scored first, then Morgan Hervey and Cannady, but the Rams still led 23-20 after three and a half minutes. The Rams were able to string a couple of made shots together to create a little separation, as Jada Farrell and MG Lymon kept Loyola within three, 29-26, with two minutes until halftime. The Rams scored the final five points to go ahead 31-26 at the break, however. 
 

Loyola had a great third quarter to tie the game, 50-50, heading into final 10 minutes of play. Mobile actually pulled ahead by 11, 45-34, after the first five-plus minutes of the quarter, but the Wolf Pack finished on a 16-5 run to tie the championship game. Cannady started that run, as she scored seven of those points, then Travis and Thomas chipped in five and four each. 
 

The teams went shot for shot in the final quarter, with Loyola taking a two-point lead three different times only to see the Rams tie it. Cannady had six points to keep giving the Wolf Pack the lead, then Travis hit a 3-pointer only to see Mobile answer with one from long-range, 59-59, at the 5:42 mark. After Mobile took a 61-59 lead, free throws by Deniya Thornton and Travis put Loyola back ahead, 62-61, but the Rams made two free throws, too, 63-62, with two minutes to go. Cannady's 30th point allowed the lead to change again to Loyola's side, and an old-fashioned 3-point play for Thornton made it a four-point lead, 67-63, in the final minute. Four three throws by Thomas iced the game, giving the Wolf Pack the tournament championship. 
 

Pack Facts

• This is the seventh SSAC Championship title for coach Kellie Kennedy and the Loyola Wolf Pack. 

• Loyola has won the SSAC Championship in three of the last four seasons. It's also the second time in the last three seasons that Loyola has won both the regular season and tournament title in the SSAC. 

• Sandra Cannady showed why she was deserving of back-to-back SSAC Player of the Year awards with her performance in the championship game. Playing 37 minutes, she put up 30 points on 11-of-16 shooting, plus eight rebounds, three assists, three steals, and a block. 

• Taylor Thomas set a new career high in assists with 11 dimes in the title game, plus 13 points for the sixth double-double of her Loyola career. 

• Thomas has scored 1,535 points in her Wolf Pack career. That total ties her with Janeicia Neely for seventh on Loyola's all-time scoring list. 

• Caitlin Travis, who averaged over 16 points a game in the tournament as a freshman, finished with 16 points against Mobile in the title game.
   

2024 SSAC Women's Basketball Championship Schedule

Wednesday, February 28
Game 1, 9:00 a.m. | #7 Brewton-Parker def. #10 UT Southern, 68-57
Game 2, 12:30 p.m. | #8 Stillman def. #9 Blue Mountain, 63-56
 

Thursday, February 29
Game 3, 9:00 a.m. | #3 Mobile def. #6 Point, 81-65
Game 4, 12:30 p.m. | #7 Brewton-Parker def. #2 William Carey, 56-45
Game 5, 4:30 p.m. | #1 Loyola def. #8 Stillman, 67-57
Game 6, 8:00 p.m. | #4 Faulkner def. #5 Life, 80-71
 

Friday, March 1
Game 7, 1:00 p.m. | #3 Mobile def. #7 Brewton-Parker, 79-75
Game 8, 5:00 p.m. | #1 Loyola def. #4 Faulkner, 81-66
 

Saturday, March 2
Championship Game | #1 Loyola def. #3 Mobile, 71-63