PENSACOLA, Fla. – Montevallo women's basketball held off a late push from West Florida to improve to 7-3 in league play and 9-4 overall after a 70-67 win on the road. 
 
Montevallo's offense got out to a slow start with an 0-for-6 mark from the field before Marisa Snodgrass got the Falcons on the board with at the 5:37 mark. With the Falcons trailing 11-2, a pair of steals led to quick UM buckets to trim the lead to 13-10 with 3:18 on the clock. Senior forward Leisha Steger sealed off her defender and scored at the rim to make it a two-point game. Following a UWF score in transition, Cali Smallwood recorded her first points of the day to end the quarter with Montevallo down by two. 
 
Sophomore Savannah Cook tied the game at 18 apiece in the early going of the second quarter before the Argos stretched its lead back to five. Cook added an and-one with 7:01 remaining in the half for Montevallo's first five points of the second quarter. Smallwood ended another UWF run at the 4:19 mark to make the score 27-23. The freshman added another field goal before knocking down one from deep to make it a two-point game down the stretch. Snodgrass beat the buzzer with a three of her own to pull the Falcons within one heading into the locker room. 
 
The two sides traded buckets to start the third quarter with UWF eventually taking a five-point lead at the 6:49 mark. A seven-point run from the Falcons, highlighted by five-straight points from Steger, gave Montevallo its first lead of the day at 43-41. The Argos tied the game with 1:02 on the clock but Cook found the bottom of the net with 38 seconds remaining to give Montevallo a 48-45 lead heading into the fourth. 
 
With the Falcons leading 52-49, Cook scored 12-consecutive points for Montevallo with a trio of triples to lift Montevallo to an 11-point lead with 5:37 on the clock. Moments later, Isabel Grimes extended the UM lead to its largest margin of the day at 66-53 with 4:46 to play. UWF cut into Montevallo's lead with a 7-0 run before Smallwood ended the run with a bucket in the paint. A three from the Argos with 34 seconds on the clock cut the lead to just three but, the Falcon defense held strong in the closing seconds to improve to 9-4 on the season.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Montevallo 70 | UWF 67
Records: Montevallo 9-4 (7-3 GSC) | UWF 8-5 (5-4 GSC)
Location: UWF Field House | Pensacola, Fla. 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED 
1^ST | Montevallo struggled to score in the early going but forcing five Argi turnovers got the Falcons in rhythm. Despite UWF shooting 47 percent from the floor, UM trailed by just two after the first ten minutes. 
2^ND | Freshman Cali Smallwood led all scoring in the second quarter with a 3-for-5 mark from the field and seven points as Montevallo shot 43.8 percent from the floor. A late three from Snodgrass left UM trailing by just one at the half. 
3^RD | The Falcons held West Florida to just 4-of-15 shooting in the third as UM took its first lead of the day with at 43-41. 
4^TH | Savannah Cook caught fire in the final stanza with 12 points coming from the sophomore on 4-of-4 shooting in the quarter. The Falcons finished the game with a 3-for-3 mark from deep in the final ten minutes to take the 70-67 road win. 
 
GAME NOTES

• Montevallo finished the game with a 41.8 percent mark from the floor and a 36.8 percent mark from deep despite shooting 0-for-7 from range in the first quarter. 
• The Falcons picked up the fifth win of the season when Montevallo is outrebounded while winning the turnover battle for the 12^th time this season. 
• Savannah Cook set a career-high with 20 points on a 7-of-9 mark from the field and a 4-of-5 mark from deep to lead all scoring on the day. 
• Isabel Grimes (14), Cali Smallwood (11), and Lia Edwards (10) each eclipsed the ten-point scoring mark with Grimes leading the team with seven assists and Smallwood leading with seven rebounds. 

 
UP NEXT: Montevallo travels to Valdosta, Ga. to take on No. 23 Valdosta State on Monday, Jan. 8.