MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Erichea Barnes' long-range shooting allowed Faulkner to build a big lead and the Lady Eagles held on down the stretch to knock off Blue Mountain 70-65 here Thursday night at Tine Davis Gymnasium, securing their first Southern States Athletic Conference victory of the season.

Barnes had five 3-pointers in the first half that ended with the Lady Eagles on top by 12, and her deep bomb with 6:23 left in the game gave Reed Sutton's team its largest lead of the night at 58-35. The Lady Toppers refused to wilt, however, at one point hitting 11 of 14 shot attempts to claw back in it. Jasmine Allen had 14 points in the fourth quarter and Kristen Milewski added 12 of her own as Blue Mountain trimmed the deficit to two points on two ocassions in the final minute. It was Barnes, though, how put the game away by knocking down six of seven free-throw attempts as the clock wound down.

"I'm very happy for this team and their effort tonight," Sutton said. "It wasn't like we were not executing late in the game, it was a matter of them doing all the right things. I challenged Erichea last week to play with that energy and enthusiasm that she's known for, because I knew it would filter through our entire team. And that's what happened tonight."

Barnes finished with 26 points, while Brandy Alley had 13 and China Leary 10. Alley added a game-high eight rebounds for the Lady Eagles, who outboarded the Lady Toppers 34-30 on the night. Blue Mountain outshot Faulkner 34 percent to 32 percent, but the Lady Eagle defense forced 16 turnovers. Sutton's team committed only 12.

Blue Mountain was paced by Milewski's 20 points and Allen's 14. Bryana Davis chipped in 10 for the Lady Toppers, who fell to 3-8 overall and 3-2 in conference play.

"This was a big first step in the league for us," said Sutton, whose Lady Eagles improved to 5-10 overall and 1-4 in the SSAC while putting an end to a seven-game skid. "Now we'll see if we can build on it Saturday."

The first two quarters belonged to the Lady Eagles and the sharp-shooting Barnes. The senior from Austell, Ga., made five of her nine attempts from behind the arc in the first half, as Faulkner sprinted to an 11-0 lead right out of the gate. The advantage grew to 30-16 midway through the second quarter and although the Lady Toppers trimmed the margin to seven, the Lady Eagles quickly regained control and took a 35-23 lead to the locker room.

The Lady Eagles host William Carey in another SSAC matchup Saturday afternoon at 2 at Tine Davis Gymnasium.