The University of North Florida women’s basketball team picked up their second ASUN win of the season Wednesday, pulling out a close 52-50 victory over the Austin Peay Governors in the final seconds of a game that kept fans on the edge of their seats. 

This victory puts head coach Erika Lambert and crew back on the right track, snapping their four-game losing streak as the team defends their home turf for the sixth time this season. 

The Ospreys exploded in the opening quarter. Following a three-pointer from Lyric Swann to seal the contest’s first points, UNF went on a 10-0 run thanks to a pair of threes from Jayla Adams and Agnes Svansdottir. This saw the team leading 13-2 at the four-minute mark.

Despite a couple of layups from Austin Peay ending the run, UNF finished the first quarter with a seven-point lead, 13-6.

Things only improved for UNF in the second quarter thanks to some strong layups in the paint by Kaila Rougier. North Florida increased their lead as the Ospreys went into halftime up by eight points, 28-20.

This lead, however, proved challenging to hold onto.

Following the halftime break, Austin Peay started to cut into the deficit. Following a back-and-forth contest that saw UNF’s lead reduced to four, the Governors went on a 6-0 run late thanks to a major play from Abby Cater involving a three-pointer, a steal and another layup on the fast break, all within 16 seconds. 

Then, at seemingly a moment’s notice, the third quarter ended with the game tied at 38 even.

In the fourth and final frame, it seemed APSU would only build off their momentum. The Governors went on another 6-0 run, resulting from free throws after UNF gave up two shooting fouls. This also saw Austin Peay take their first lead of the game.

The Ospreys came back late thanks to a back-to-back three-pointer and layup from Sarah Taub. The game eventually tied at 47 after a layup from Lyric Swann. Austin peay climbed back by three points, but a three-pointer by Kaila Rougier kept things tied up with just under two minutes remaining. 

After some back-and-forth play, the contest remained tied at 50 points each with ten seconds remaining. Overtime briefly seemed like a likely outcome, but Jayla Adams had other plans.

Following a timeout, Jayla Adams drove into the paint with the game on the line as the clock counted down. While facing heavy coverage, she sank the game-winning layup on the left side, sealing a UNF victory 52-50.

Following the game, head coach Erika Lambert complimented her team on their ability to overcome tough situations and win in a close environment.

“This is how you defend your home court,” Lambert said. “It wasn’t the prettiest basketball game, but we did what we needed to do. I really like how we set the tone defensively from the start and were able to force some turnovers with our back-court pressure.”

Turnovers indeed played a huge role in the victory; UNF put up ten points off turnovers in the first half alone.

When asked about the play drawn up behind Jayla Adams’ game-winning bucket, Lambert stated that it didn’t go exactly as  expected but trusted Adams and her abilities, citing her as a “high IQ basketball player.”

The Ospreys will go on the road later this week, traveling to Nashville, Tennessee to play against the Lipscomb University Bisons on Friday at 7:00 p.m.