BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (Feb. 13, 2025) – East Tennessee State University women's basketball dropped a road contest to Samford, 50-43, on Thursday.

Junior forward Meghan Downing set the single-season school record for blocks with 54, passing the previous mark of 51 held by Serena Clark and Candace Gibson. The record-setting block arrived with 50 seconds remaining in the third quarter, and she tallied a pair more in the fourth to move to 101 career rejections, putting her alone in fifth all-time in school history. It's the sixth time this season that Downing has had four or more blocks in a game.

Freshman guard Carmen Richardson had a career-best day on the glass, securing ten rebounds (four offensive). 5th year guard Courtney Moore led ETSU from the field with 14 points.

As a team, the Buccaneers shot just 27% from the field, a season low. ETSU also struggled to get to the free throw line, and its four attempts at the line were the third fewest on the year. In the two matchups with Samford, the Blue & Gold attempted just five free throws.

ETSU got off to a quick start, as Downing hit a 3-pointer 18 seconds into the game, and  senior guard Braylyn Milton followed it with a triple of her own. Milton hit another 3-pointer with 4:59 to go in the first before the first scoring drought befell the Bucs, as they wouldn't make another shot in the frame. 

The Buccaneer defense locked down Samford in the second, only allowing three made shots. Moore hit a pair of shots and the Bucs used balanced contributions to take a 26-23 lead into the break.

The ETSU offense ground to a halt in the third quarter, as the Bucs were unable to generate momentum on that half of the floor. Moore scored with 7:41 and 1:16, and had all four of ETSU's points in the frame. Meanwhile, Samford got to the free throw line efficiently, going 6-for-6 in the quarter.

The Bulldogs hit a pair of shots at the beginning of the fourth before the Bucs' offense got ETSU back in the game. Redshirt junior guard Paige Lyons, Moore and Milton combined for a 10-0 run over a four minute span, forcing a Samford timeout with three minutes left. The offense wouldn't be quite enough to propel ETSU to the win, as the Bulldogs then responded with a 7-0 run before Richardson hit a three with 12 seconds to play.  

Next, ETSU travels to Mercer at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15.

For more information on Buccaneer women's basketball, follow @ETSU_WBB on X (Twitter) and Instagram, and visit ETSUBucs.com.