MONTGOMERY, Ala. – A win against a ranked Loyola squad was going to be a difficult ask for Faulkner, especially with the team coming off a two-week layoff due to COVID-19 since playing in its last game against Blue Mountain on January 6 and a few players and even Coach Reed Sutton unavailable for the game due to the virus. Yet, against the odds, the Lady Eagles, led by assistant coach Jacob Roark, had the advantage by 11 points with 8:21 left before the visitors came roaring back with a 13-0 run, backing up their No. 24 national ranking. Faulkner lost 83-76 at Tine Davis Gymnasium on Thursday night to fall to 8-9 overall, 1-4 in conference play.

Leading 65-54, the ill-fated run began with two Loyola free throws. Sydni Tangle and Taylor Thomas proceeded to gather in back-to-back steals and subsequent buckets to get to within five. A third consecutive turnover, an errant pass into the Faulkner bench by Channing Gafford led to a three-pointer from Kennedy Hansberry before two more foul shots and a Liz Cratton bucket off an Ashlyn Adkins turnover put Loyola up 67-65 with 6:18 left. Adkins tied it at 67 and again at 70 on a three before Hansberry hit her third of the game from beyond the arc to put the Wolf Pack up for good 73-70. Angela Grant had an and-one opportunity to tie the score again, but missed the free throw before a Morgan Holland travel led to a clinching three from Thomas that was the beginning of the 10-4 run built off free throws that ended the game.

The teams traded baskets for most of the first quarter, with the Wolf Pack scoring first and the Lady Eagles responded to each score by tying or pulling within one. With the game at 12-12, Faulkner was on defense, attempting to end the quarter with that score, but Tangle hit a three-pointer off an inbound with one second left to put her team back on top. Just under a minute into the next period, though, the hosts turned a pair of Loyola missed free throws into a Jacie Andrews layup in her first start of this season. Gafford's trey gave the Lady Eagles their first lead of the day at 17-15 before Tangle hit another in response.

Following a Wolf Pack bucket from Jazmene McMillan, Gafford and Tangle traded long-range shots once again before Adkins hit her second three-ball of the day to deadlock the score and a reverse layup to give Faulkner a 25-23 lead. However, a three-point play by Tay Cannon gave her team momentum and started a 14-3 run for Loyola. Cannon and Thomas were responsible for all of their team's field goals in this stretch, including two layups by Thomas off of Nequoia Adams turnovers to go up 30-25 and force a Faulkner timeout. However, Grant would get a layup of her own after getting two offensive boards with eight seconds left in the half to leave Faulkner down 37-30 going into the locker room.

The Lady Eagles came out of halftime with a fire lit under them, as they won the third quarter 27-12. After a trade of scores, short buckets by Rachel Hager and Adkins and another long-range one from Gafford tied the score at 39. After a score by Hager and three free throws, Evaiah Burrows's reverse layup put Faulkner up 46-41. In response to a McMillan three, seven Holland points sandwiched a Hager and-one gave the Lady Eagles a 57-46 lead before another three by Tangle narrowed the margin before the quarter ended. Adkins helped to restore the 11-point difference twice with treys in the first two minutes of the final period, the first helped by Adkins stealing and assisting a Grant layup, but it was not enough.

While shooting 47.5%, Faulkner held the visitors to just a 35.1% mark and won points in the paint 38-22; the Wolf Pack, however, made 40.6% of their shots from beyond the arc to just 36% by the Lady Eagles. The hosts were also outdone in the categories of rebounds, especially on the offensive side, free throw percentage, turnovers, steals, points off of turnovers and fast break points. In addition to Andrews, Hager and Grant were also starting for the first time this season; it was Hager's first of her college career and Grant's first since her ACL injury against Bethel last season.

Adkins racked up 21 points, five boards, three assists and three steals. Gafford and Holland, the first reserve in, each scored 12 points. Hager and Grant had 10 apiece, the former with eight rebounds and the latter with nine. Gafford and Hager each registered blocks, while these two, Adkins, Andrews and Adams combined for seven steals. Thomas led Loyola with 23 points, nine rebounds, three assists and six of her team's whopping 14 steals. Hansberry was next with 17 points and five assists, while Critton scored 10 points, five boards and two steals. Cannon tallied nine points and five boards, and Sandra Cannady added seven rebounds. Tangle played 30 minutes off the bench, with 15 points, five rebounds, five dimes and two steals to show for it.

The setback comes as the schedule will only get tougher thanks to the postponements, with three road games to be played in the next week, including Talladega and Blue Mountain teams that have already handed the Lady Eagles losses. The other away contest is at Stillman before Faulkner returns home on January 29 to play Stillman again.