MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Alabama State fell behind early before battling back in the third quarter, but South Alabama pulled away down the stretch for a 59-47 non-conference victory at the Dunn-Oliver Acadome Tuesday night.
 
Kenya Pye led Alabama State (1-6) with 11 points off the bench, while hitting on 50 (5-of-10) percent of her shots from the floor. Jordyn Holmes added 10 points and four rebounds, while Shamyiah Smith and Tatyana Calhoun grabbed six rebounds.
 
Holmes scored the first seven points of the game for the Lady Hornets, before Amber Hunt hit a three-pointer in the final minutes of the first quarter to cut the lead to 15-12. However, South Alabama outscored Alabama State 12-4 in the second quarter, to push the halftime lead to 27-16.
 
Alabama State trimmed the deficit to as little as five in the second half after a blocked shot by Calhoun and four consecutive points, trimming the Lady Jags lead to 35-30 with under four minutes to go in the third quarter.
 
South Alabama (4-1) was able to pull away with a pair of three-pointers by Erin Autio to end the third and start the fourth quarter. The Lady Jags started the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run and never looked back.
 
Pye scored nine of her 11 points in the fourth quarter to end the game.
 
Alabama State shot 32.1 (18-of-56) percent from the floor, and 26.7 (4-of-15) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 58.3 (7-of-12) percent from the free throw line. South Alabama shot 40.7 (24-of-59) percent from the floor, and 33.3 (8-of-24) percent from beyond the arc. They also shot 33.3 (3-of-9) percent from the free throw line.
 
Erin Autio led the Lady Jags with 20 points, while Shaforia Kines added nine points and nine rebounds in the win.
 
Alabama State returns to action Sunday afternoon against 12th-ranked Tennessee in Knoxville (Tenn.), with tip set for 2 pm and can be seen on the SEC Network.
 
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