CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. – In the first meeting between a pair of women's basketball powerhouses in the state of Kentucky in over 30 years, the Campbellsville University women's basketball team earned a 71-67 win over Thomas More University on Saturday afternoon.
 
It was a strong second half and more specifically third quarter that carried the Lady Tigers to their four-point win as CU started the second half down 39-37. Campbellsville's third quarter was that a 16-10 advantage as the Saints struggled from shooting from the field going 5-of-16 (31.3%) overall and 0-for-5 from three-point range.
 
Courtney Pritchett and Savannah Gregory was key to the second half performance for Campbellsville as the pair combined for 18 points for the Lady Tigers in the second 20 minutes of play. Madison Faulkner led all scorers with 22 points in the game with only four coming in the second half but she came up with big free throws down the stretch for CU.
 
Pritchett did a lot of everything in the game as she finished with 17 points in the game while adding six rebounds, six assists and four steals for one of the best games in the redshirt freshman's early career. Gregory added 15 points, led all players with eight rebounds, and added two steals herself.
 
Senior point guard Caitlin Hall reached a milestone in the game in the assist category as she finished with nine points and six assists. On that sixth assist, Hall passed Katie Allen on the all-time assist leaderboard as she now sits at fifth all-time with 548 career assists.
 
Late in the fourth quarter with the Lady Tigers up 68-63 under a minute in the fourth quarter, Pritchett stole the ball and wisely called a timeout to advance the ball to the front court. CU went on to hit 3-of-6 free throws to keep the game at two possessions despite the Saints hitting two late layups in their comeback efforts.
 
The first half was a story of two quarters as the Lady Tigers had a strong opening quarter to hold a 21-16 lead after 10 minutes followed by a 23-16 advantage for TMU to give the Saints that halftime lead.
 
Faulkner was huge for Campbellsville in the first half with a game-high 18 points on 7-of-13 (53.8%) shooting from the field. Faulkner's first half was key to keeping the Lady Tigers within a possession of Thomas More in the first half as the Saints had numerous opportunities to pull away
 
It was almost business as usual defensively for CU as they forced 17 first half Thomas More turnovers that led to 17 points for the Lady Tigers. Pritchett was all over the floor for Campbellsville in the opening half with eight points, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals with all four of her rebounds coming on the offensive end, helping CU get 11 second chance points.
 
The Saints were able to shoot for a high field goal percentage, however, as TMU went 13-for-21 (61.9%) from the field in the half, hitting four three pointers compared to just two for Campbellsville. Courtney Hurst was the leading scorer for Thomas More in the first half, hitting 3-of-5 three-point field goals all in the first quarter to end the half with nine points.
 
The Lady Tigers will have another home and road split next week when they host Life University at the Powell Athletic Center next Thursday at 6 p.m. ET at the Powell Athletic Center before traveling to Cumberland University on Feb. 1.