LIVINGSTON, Ala. - The Argonauts (5-2, 1-0 GSC) rebounded from a slow start to earn a come-from-behind 70-61 win in their GSC opener over West Alabama (0-6, 0-2 GSC) at Pruitt Hall on Saturday night.
 
The Tigers scored the first two buckets of the game, and after UWF tied it 4-4 with a pair of layups of their own, the hosts went on an 11-2 run to take a 15-6 lead with 3:44 left in the first quarter. In the start of another big outing, Rylie Stephens scored a three to stop the bleeding and a jumper to close the quarter in addition to an offensive putback and score by Bella Green to narrow the margin to five entering the second period.
 
The teams went back and forth until the 1:51 mark of the second quarter. Delaney Trushel scored a layup before assisting a Stephens layup off a Bella Stone steal to pull the Argos within one at 30-29. In response to a Tiger bucket, Kamille Clark, the grad transfer from West Alabama, scored a layup to keep the deficit at one heading into the locker room.
 
1:16 into the second half, Green gave UWF its first lead of the game with a jumper off a Haidyn Pitsch assist. In trouble for the first time tonight, trailing 38-34, UWA pulled off an 8-2 run to go up 42-40. Trushel, Izarria Alexander and Stephens scored layups, the latter two off steals and resulting fastbreaks, to give West Florida a permanent lead at 46-42 with 34 seconds left in the quarter. 
 
The Tigers then scratched back a point at the free throw line before committing consecutive turnovers on their last two possessions of the period, the latter resulting in a steal and fastbreak layup by Green with four seconds until the fourth quarter. With their most productive offensive span coming in the final 10 minutes, the Argos kept the hosts at arm's length the rest of the way to stay undefeated on the road this season.
 
After shooting just 33.3% from the court and 12.5% from three in the first quarter and following it up with 38.1% and 16.67% marks, respectively, in the second, the Argos turned it on with a 41.18% third and 50% fourth, with a two-for-two mark from deep. Despite 20% production from three and 47.1% from the charity stripe, being outgained in both categories, the Argos shot 40.3% overall while holding the Tigers to 33.8%. UWF scored 44 points in the paint to the Tigers' 32, 16 fastbreak points to nine and 23 points off turnovers to 16, while also forcing five more turnovers and tallying six more steals.
 
Stephens, the grad transfer from Samford, put up her second double-double as an Argo with 26 points and 13 rebounds. She went 10-for-24 overall and three-for-six from long range, scoring three of her team's four triples. Trushel scored 10 points, going five-of-six from the field, and eight rebounds. Pitsch tallied nine points and five assists. Clark and Alexander each had eight points, and Clark blocked three shots against her former team. Green came up big with six points, seven boards and three steals, and Stone added six boards, three assists and four steals.
 
UWF continues its GSC road swing with a Monday contest at Alabama Huntsville at 5:30 pm.