Firebirds Roll Past No. 25 Virginia St. on Homecoming Night for 3rd Straight Win

WASHINGTON, DC- With two decisive victories already under its belt, the University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team earned a comfortable, 88-62 win over No. 25 Virginia State on Homecoming Night, Wednesday, November 19^th at UDC Sports Complex.

The Firebirds (3-0), who were receiving votes for the top-25 national poll coming into the week, came out strong in front of a raucous UDC crowd for the season home opener, jumping out to an early 22-3 lead and continuinh to out-shoot their opponents en-route to their third straight victory. UDC has won its first three consecutive games of the season by an average of 22.3 points per-game.

Aided by solid free-throw shooting and deadly shooting from behind-the-arc, the Firebirds went on an 11-2 run in the first five minutes of the game. Not even 10 minutes into the action, UDC led 22-3. The Firebirds continued to play strong throughout the first half, and despite two consecutive made three-pointers by Virginia State to end the half, the Firebirds still took a sizeable, 41-29 advantage into intermission.

UDC picked up right where it left off in the second half and continued to add to its lead. The Firebirds shot a sizzling, 58-percent from the field and converted 8-of-9 free throws in the second half, and ultimately they outscored Virginia State by 14 in the closing half to secure the easy, 26-point victory.

UDC was led offensively by senior point guard Telisha Turner (Criminal Justice – Wilmington, DE/Harcum), who, in addition to putting up a team-high 19 points, also added five assists. Coming off the bench, senior forward Shakena Williams (Accounting – Washington, DC/Frederick CC) added 14 points of her own, including four makes from behind-the-arc. Tatyana Calhoun (Architecture – Disputanta, VA/Sussex Central HS) also finished in double-figures scoring with 10 points.

On the defensive end, the Firebirds held Virginia State to 38-percent shooting from the field and forced 22 turnovers. (UDC is forcing an average of 24.0 turnovers per-game this season) Dennika Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS) made her presence known throughout the game as she collected a team-high two blocks, five steals, and 10 rebounds. The reigning ECC Women's Basketball Player of the Week was also a key contributor on offense, adding 16 points and shooting 56-percent from the field.

The Firebirds return to the court this Saturday, November 22^nd, as they square off against Bloomfield College for their second home game of the season. Tip-off is at 1:00 p.m.