Williamsburg, KY – UPIKE women's basketball got back to work on Monday night, facing a (RV) Cumberlands squad on the road. Cumberlands pulled together in the second and fourth quarters, edging out the Bears 67-55.  

The loss is the second straight for UPIKE as Coach Williams' team will return to Pikeville with a record of 6-4. The Bears stand with a conference mark of 2-4 with plenty of basketball left in the conference schedule.  

With 17 points on 5-8 shooting from the field, Alexis Reed led the Bears in scoring. The junior capitalized on her speed advantage against Cumberlands' defense to draw fouls and went 6-6 from the charity stripe. Always a threat, Brianna Burbridge managed her sixth double-double of the year with 12 points and 10 rebounds. 

UPIKE managed good numbers from the floor in the first and final periods, but struggled in the second and third periods. The Bears finished with a 36% clip from the floor, going 5-18 from deep for 27.8%. From the free throw line the Bears performed well, hitting 12-16 attempts for 75%. 

From the jump it was a fast paced showdown as the teams combined for five scores and a pair of fouls in the first three minutes of action. Morgan Stamper put the Bears on the board first with a trey off an assist from Julia Parker. Bailey Frazier fired another three on the next possession, connecting from deep as the teams traded buckets. The quarter closed with a 5-0 UPIKE run highlighted by a three from Serenity Turnbull which put the Bears up 15-10.  

Brianna Burbridge showed off her range on the first possession of the second, drilling a contested three giving the Bears a 19-12 lead. UPIKE maintained a six point lead until the 7:24 trip to the free throw line for UC kicked off a 9-2 run for the Patriots. UC took the lead at 4:28 and would hold on the remainder of the period thanks in part to a pair of forced turnovers. The Patriots had a 35-29 lead headed into the break.  

Mary Englert took matters into her own hands after four minutes played in the third. Following a converted and-one, Englert burst through the lane on the following possession, grabbing another bucket to put the Bears up 38-37 with 6:24 to play. UC pulled together a string of impressive possessions in the last five minutes of the third, improving their rebounding effort to go up 47-41 going into the fourth.  

UC capitalized on UPIKE's empty possessions in the first few minutes of the fourth, enabling the Patriots to hit five shots unanswered by the Bears. As the teams headed towards the backend of the period, UPIKE made strides offensively thanks in part to some highlight plays by Reed including a pair of three pointers. As the period came to a close, UC grew their lead to 12 following a pair of turnovers from the Bears. The Patriots held on in the final minutes, claiming the 67-55 victory at home. 

UPIKE women's basketball looks ahead to a return to Appalachian Wireless Arena on Thursday, January 7th as they face-off with Freed-Hardeman.