NASHVILLE –  Lipscomb women's basketball (6-4, 0-0 ASUN) took a one-point edge, their first lead in the ball game, early in the fourth court but weren't able to hold off a hot shooting Chattanooga (10-1, 0-0 SoCon) squad who erupted for 32 points in the fourth quarter alone in the 72-62 loss inside Allen Arena Thursday night. 

The Bisons had no answers for reigning SoCon Player of the Week Jada Quinn, who led all scorers with 24 points for the Mocs, 16 coming in the fourth quarter. Individually for the Bisons, Molly Heard's 15-point performance led the way, followed by Bella Vinson, who put up 14 Thursday night, while Blythe Pearson had 13, and Aleah Sorrentino ended with 11.

As a team, the Bisons shot 45 percent from the floor (22-of-55) but just 9-of-19 from the free throw line and 3-of-11 from downtown. The Mocs shot 43 percent from the floor but had their best night of the season from three-point range, going 12-of-26 from the deep. Chattanooga entered the contest averaging just over six made three-point baskets a game, doubling that average against the Bisons. UTC made their trips to the line count, going 16-of-19 from the charity stripe Thursday night. 

After the Mocs took a 13-8 lead with 4:33 left the frame after a second chance layup, both teams went on a three-minute scoring drought. Claira McGowan broke the silence with a two-point score at the 1:06 mark, the last bucket of the quarter, as the Mocs held on to an early 13-10 lead.  

Chattanooga began to add points to their lead fast in the second, opening the quarter with a 7-2 run to take a 20-12 lead with 7:59 on the clock. After a Lipscomb timeout, the Mocs continued to stretched their lead, in front by as much as 13 before a pivotal Bisons run, including two-point scores by Sorrentino and Vinson, at the end of the quarter, cut their deficit to six (30-24) at the halftime break. 

UTC opened the third quarter with an easy two on a back-door layup and a three-pointer from the wing to stretch their lead back out to 11 with less than a minute gone by after the break. However, Lipscomb worked on both ends of the floor to keep themselves in contention and began their comeback efforts shortly after. The Bisons outscoring the Mocs 15-10 and used a seven-point swing to reach within one at the end of the period (40-39). Defensively, the Bisons held the Mocs scoreless for the final four minutes of the third. 

The Bisons took their first lead of the night early in the fourth (9:23) as Molly Heard fought through contact and converted on a crowd pleasing reverse layup, giving her squad a one-point edge. That edge unfortunately, lasted only 43 seconds as the Mocs logged back-to-back buckets to stretch their lead back out to four. 

None the less, Lipscomb never panicked, responding to each spurt the Mocs had, but a converted and-one opportunity by Jada Quinn and more free throws down the stretch put the ball game out of reach for the Bisons. 

The Bisons had no answers for the Mocs offense, who shot 8-of-14 in the fourth quarter, including four three-pointers, and went 12-of-13 from the line. As a result, the Bisons fell in the first-ever meeting between the two programs 72-62 on their home floor.

HERD NOTES:

• Four Bisons reached double figures for the fourth time this season. 
• Aleah Sorrentino went over 500 points for her career with 488 for those at Lipscomb.
• Sorrentino also earned her seventh double-double of her career and first of the year after an 11-point, 10-rebound night.
• With the win, UTC extended their winning streak to nine straight.  
• The Bisons hit just three three-pointers, their lowest amount this season. Entering the contest, Lipscomb ranked top-20 in the nation in three-pointers made per game at over nine. 
• Lipscomb needs one win in their next three contests to break the program record for most non-conference wins in a season. 

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UP NEXT: 
Lipscomb will stay in Nashville but take on Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m. CT. Continue to check lipscombsports.com and the team's social media accounts (@lipscombwbb on IG and @lipscomb_wbb on X) for the most up-to-date information on Lipscomb women's basketball.