MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Alabama State fell to Prairie View in their first of two games in Texas on Saturday afternoon with a 61-58 loss inside the William Nicks Building in a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game.
 
Alabama State (5-10, 4-2 SWAC) stormed out to an early 8-2 lead in the opening quarter behind six early points from guard Tyesha Rudolph (Evergreen, Ala.). After the Panthers reduced the lead, Hannah White (Columbus, Miss.) hit a three and helped the Hornets take a 11-8 lead into the first media timeout of the game.
 
The two teams continued to battle in the close game, with neither team gaining a significant lead in the first half, as they headed to the locker rooms tied at 29-29. Both teams ended the half shooting 33 percent from the field and both scored 12 points in the paint.
 
After an initial run from Prairie View to start the second half, Alabama State responded after a three from Jayla Crawford (Birmingham, Ala.)  starting a run for the Hornets along with Ward. The two combined for 11 of the 19 Hornet points in the quarter, as they took a 48-43 lead into the final ten minutes of play.
 
Prairie View fought back with a frenzied fourth quarter and eventually tied the game at 57-57 with just under four minutes to play, forcing an Alabama State timeout. After an Alabama State free throw, the Panthers then took a 59-58 lead on a jumper to beat the shot clock with 2:42 to play, a score that stood until a final pair of free throws from Prairie View for the 61-58 final.
 
Alabama State finished the game shooting 32.3 (21-of-65) percent from the floor, 19 (4-of-21) percent from three and 75 (12-of-16) percent from the free throw line. The Panthers shot 36.4 (20-of-55) percent from the field, 26.7 (4of-15) percent from three and 81 (17-of-21) percent from the free throw line.
 
Ayana Emmanuel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) led the Hornets on the afternoon with 14 points to go along with three assists and a steal, while Crawford and Ward both finished with nine points each in the loss. The Panthers had two scorers in double figures in Kirdis Clark and Diana Rosenthal, who both scored 17 points.
 
UP NEXT
Alabama State will travel to close out their Texas trip with a battle against Texas Southern on Monday, January 24 with tip set for 5:30 pm.
 
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