PENSACOLA, Fla. – The UWF women's basketball team shot a season-high 46 percent in picking up its first conference win with a 63-59 decision over Mississippi College at the UWF Field House Saturday.
 
UWF (5-11, 1-7 Gulf South) never trailed in the game and had three players score in double figures. Charlotte Ellmore tied her career-high with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting and Rachel McCree finished with 12 points and four assists in her first start since the opening weekend. Danielle Norquest had another double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, her nation's leading 12th of the year.
 
The Argonauts were the stronger team inside, finishing with 28 points in the paint and a 45-40 rebounding edge.
 
UWF came out on fire, making nine of its first 10 shots – including eight-consecutive at one point – in building a 19-13 lead in the opening 6:30 of the contest. MC pulled within four at the half but the Argo defense was solid, limiting the Lady Choctaws to 21 percent shooting in the second frame.
 
MC trimmed the margin to one early in the third before baskets by McCree and Norquest, and an Ellmore free throw moved the lead back to 38-33 midway through the period. UWF got the advantage to double digits to open the fourth before MC made a final comeback.
 
The visitors got within one on a Zariah Matthews 3-point play with 1:22 left. Ellmore grabbed an offensive board off a missed free throw and laid it in for a 59-56 lead. She got another shot to fall on the ensuing possession following a Lady Choctaw turnover to stretch the margin to five with 30 seconds left. Lindsey Vaughn made a 3 for MC to get to within a pair before McCree made two free throws to ice the game. She was 5-of-6 at the line on a night when the rest of the team was just 6-of-14.
 
MC (7-7, 4-4) was led by Matthews' game-high 24 points. The Lady Choctaws were 14-of-16 at the foul line. They also made seven 3-pointers.
 
UWF will hit the road for its next two contests, traveling to Shorter and West Georgia next week. Thursday's game against the Hawks in Rome, Ga. will begin at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time.