Brundidge sparks UAFS home victory

NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN

ARKANSAS-FORT SMITH 69, ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO 58

FORT SMITH — Kayla Brundidge brought the energy early for the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith women’s basketball team Saturday night.

The junior forward scored seven of UAFS’ initial 11 points to help build a lead and pull away for a 69-58 victory against Arkansas-Monticello at the Stubblefield Center. The win makes it two consecutive for the Lions after dropping the initial four road games of the season.

“I wanted to lock in and knew this was a big game because we always want to protect our home floor,” Brundidge said. “I wanted to make sure to give all I’ve got. I’m just trying to help the team as much as possible to get that win. If it’s on the boards or with points, I want to be there for my team.”

Brundidge, Bentonville’s Riley Hayes and Dala Allen each scored a team-high 11 points for the Lions. Brundidge also finished with a team-high nine rebounds. Aaliyah Prince also chipped in 10 points for UAFS.

UA-Monticello (2-3) was guided by a game-high 18 points from Bailey Harris and 15 points from Alindsey Long. Greenwood’s Shea Goodwin also had four points for the Blossoms.

UAFS (2-4) was able to take an 11-4 lead to open the game behind the seven early points from Brundidge. The key the rest of the game was balance, and it showed in the Lion’s biggest run of the game.

The Lions were able to build an 18-4 edge early in the first quarter off a 13-0 scoring stretch with five different players scoring points. UAFS ended up having seven different scorers finish with points in the initial quarter.

“It builds a lot of confidence when you start out strong,” Brundidge said. “When you are going to the basket and they are going in, that can really provide some momentum. We wanted to build off that.”

Allen off the bench provided plenty of value for the Lions. While making her team-high 11 points, she was a perfect three for three from the field and five for five from the free-throw line.

“I just have to thank my team for throwing it in to me so I can make it happen,” Allen said. “They really helped me out this game. Our mentality is that it doesn’t matter who starts. We all want to make our impact when we get in the game for our teammates.”

UAFS coach Ryan McAdams loved the way his team shared the ball and that the depth of the roster showed. The Lions bench finished with 29 points after having 13 in its previous game.

“Our kids deserved this one with a collective effort,” McAdams said. “We had some role kids step in and play big minutes. We wanted to make a statement inside. I felt we had good matchups.”

UAFS held a 22-17 lead after the first quarter, a 34-30 advantage at halftime and just a 54-49 heading into the final quarter. Pulling away for the 11-point win was again led by a balanced effort. Six different Lions scored in the final quarter.

“We are trying to build confidence for the entire team, and this could go a long way in developing that,” McAdams said. “We play very unselfishly when we commit to it. Sharing the basketball can be very infectious.”