MARTIN, Tenn. (November 4, 2024) – The University of North Alabama women's basketball team tipped off the 2024-25 season with a hard-fought, 66-63 triumph Monday night over the UT Martin Skyhawks. This marked the first win under new head coach Candi Whitaker.
The new era for UNA Women's Basketball began in Martin, Tenn. on Monday, with the Lions (1-0) opening with the new year with a quality opponent. The Skyhawks (0-1) were an NCAA Tournament team in 2023-24, but it was UNA who provided madness early on with the gritty win on the road.
UT Martin started with the momentum in the first quarter, with North Alabama off to a slow start in the opening period. The Lions' offense came alive in the second, using a massive quarter from senior Charity Gallegos to turn a first-quarter deficit into a slim halftime lead.
A competitive third quarter resulted in the Lions increasing the lead by one, but both teams played to the final whistle in the final quarter of action. UNA maintained its fourth-quarter advantage, but UT Martin made it a game late with a flurry of threes. Clutch free throws from UNA, as well as game-sealing defensive possession, proved enough to take the battle in Tennessee.
UNA's offense finished with 46.9 percent shooting from the field, but the difference came from the three-point line with 44.4 percent shooting totals. The Lions also had full control on the boards with North Alabama grabbing 37 rebounds as a team compared to 27 from UT Martin.
Junior Emma Kate Tittle was the leading scorer with 21 points, finishing 7-13 from the field and 5-8 from the floor. The Tuscumbia native was three shy of tying her career high, and also finished with a career-high three steals.
Senior Charity Gallegos capped her UNA debut with 15 points, finishing second on the team while adding four assists. The senior was instrumental in the second-quarter turnaround, scoring all her points in the period.
Junior Alyssa Clutter rounded out the top three scorers for UNA with 10 points, also adding four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Clutter secured one of two blocks for the Lions with the other coming from junior Jazzy Klinge.
Klinge led all players with nine rebounds, and both Gallegos and Tittle tied the team lead with four assists.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER:
The Skyhawks came out the gates with a solid first quarter, converting on 53.3 percent of their shots to get out to an early advantage. The Lions responded with 42.9 percent shooting from quarter one, with Clutter taking on the bulk of scoring with four points. North Alabama added three points from the free-throw line, with UNA heading to the second quarter with work to do.
SECOND QUARTER:
An improved quarter performance turned an eight-point deficit in the first to a two-point lead at halftime. The offense shot 55.6 percent from the field with four made threes catapulting the Lions from the slow start. Gallegos was on fire in the period, converting on 6-8 shots from the floor and 3-4 from the three-point line. The defense also played a key role in the second quarter, holding the Skyhawks to 30.8% shooting and 25% from three.
THIRD QUARTER:
Despite a 57.1 percent shooting quarter from the Skyhawks, North Alabama maintained its lead with a solid quarter. The Lions only hit 28.6 percent from the field, but junior Emma Kate Tittle had a perfect shooting quarter with seven points on two made shots. Scores from Klinge, Jones and Clutter all contributed to the quarter performance, with UNA increasing its lead to three heading to the final period.
FOURTH QUARTER:
The final period proved to be the most chaotic of the quarters, but a late offensive run from the Lions sealed the opening win of the new season. Both teams came out slow to start the period, but UNA settled in to shoot 60 percent in the final period. UT Martin refused to go away, hitting three late threes to keep it close, but North Alabama showed poised as the time went down by converting four of its final four field goal attempts. Klinge and fellow junior India Howard both converted clutch free throws with under a minute to play, and the defense held strong on the final possession.
UP NEXT
North Alabama will return to Tennessee for its second contest, taking on the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles on Sunday, Nov. 10 at 6 p.m.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
