RICHMOND, Ky. –
Luna Ueda scored a game-high 16 points and recorded seven steals, and
Kirsten Lewis-Williams reached 1,000 career points as the Eastern Kentucky University women's basketball team defeated Radford 65-56 Saturday afternoon in its home opener at Baptist Health Arena.
Eastern Kentucky (2-1) earned its second straight win and extended its winning streak over Radford to four games. Lewis-Williams reached the milestone at the free-throw line with 44 seconds remaining and finished with nine points and six rebounds.
Michelle Ugwah came off the bench to score 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting and added seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
Liz Freihofer finished with nine points and six rebounds, while
Kenleigh Woods added seven points, six rebounds and three assists.
Kailani Lindsey matched Ugwah for the team lead with seven rebounds.
The Colonels turned 23 Radford turnovers into 25 points and outscored the Highlanders 44-24 in the paint. Ueda accounted for seven of EKU's 14 steals, and the Colonels held Radford to 31.1 percent shooting.
Georgia Simonsen led Radford (1-2) with 13 points. Angelina Nice added 10 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, and Kailyn Fields finished with 10 points.
Ueda hit two 3-pointers and scored nine points in the opening quarter, helping EKU build a 15-9 lead. Radford answered with seven straight points to move in front before
Rylee Kalocay converted a three-point play with nine seconds remaining to give the Colonels an 18-16 lead after one.
A Freihofer layup gave EKU a 22-18 advantage early in the second quarter, but Radford scored seven straight points and took the lead on a Fields 3-pointer. The Highlanders extended their lead to six before Ueda's layup with 1:18 remaining sent the Colonels into halftime trailing 30-26.
Lewis-Williams scored five straight points early in the third quarter to tie the game at 32. After the teams traded scores, Ugwah made two free throws with 6:02 remaining to put EKU ahead for good. The Colonels closed the quarter with seven unanswered points, including a three-point play from Ugwah that made it 49-41 entering the fourth.
Lindsey opened the fourth with a layup to give EKU its largest lead at 51-41. Radford pulled within 53-49 before Ugwah scored inside and Freihofer knocked down a 3-pointer to push the lead back to nine.
The Highlanders cut the margin to 58-54 with 2:56 remaining, but Ugwah answered with a layup on the next possession and Woods followed with a jumper to make it 62-54. Lewis-Williams made two free throws in the final minute to reach the milestone and finish the scoring.
Eastern Kentucky continues its homestand Tuesday against Midway at Baptist Health Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
