Marshall University Athletics
Marshall Women Advance Past South Alabama, 73-59
3/4/2025 5:47:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Herd takes on Texas State in 2nd round at 3 p.m. on Wednesday
Box Score | 2025 SBC Tournament Bracket
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Marshall Women's Basketball earned a 73-59 win over South Alabama in the first round of the 2025 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Women's Basketball Championship at Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Florida, on Tuesday.
With the win, Marshall is now 12-19 overall and advances to the 2nd round of the 2025 SBC Women's Basketball Championship against Texas State. The game will start at 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT.
"I was really proud of our effort today," Marshall Women's Basketball Head Coach Juli Fulks said. "We had a couple goals: one was obviously to win, and the other was to manage the minutes well because we want to do something special here. I thought we got a really good effort from a lot of people on both ends of the ball."
Marshall was led in scoring by Aislynn Hayes, who was named as an All-SBC First Team selection earlier this week.
Hayes came out of the gate strong, scoring 17 of her game-high 22 points in the first half to lead the Herd to a big lead early.
"I think it was a great momentum start because we came out hot and I feel like the team that comes out hot is usually the team that ends up winning," Hayes said. "Our defense was amazing today."
Marshall took a 39-28 lead into the locker room after Hayes hit a 3-pointer and Meredith Maier got a steal and layup just before the halftime horn. Maier finished with 11 points.
"That gave us momentum back because they went on a run for a bit, but we counter-acted that," said C.C. Mays, who finished with 12 points and grabbed six rebounds. "We went into the second half with a little bit more momentum and we started really well with a score-stop-score."
The Herd carried that momentum into the second half, keeping South Alabama without a field goal for the first 6:30 of the third quarter. The lead ballooned to 24 points after a transition 3-pointer by Peyton Ilderton.
Marshall's defense kept South Alabama to 1 of 17 shooting in the third quarter, which helped the Herd put the game away.
The Herd also got a strong effort on both ends from Leyocha Marigney, who finished with six points, seven rebounds and five blocks – a huge boost on the defensive end.
"I thought Leyocha had a really good game," Fulks said. "Defensively, she was moving really well and she alters shots. That's the biggest piece – she gives us someone who can change people's shots in the paint."
To see the bracket for the 2025 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Championship, click HERE.
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