CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The Mocs led for just 15 seconds the entire game, but behind a late rally, they came out on top 59-58 against Western Kentucky inside McKenzie Arena.

In the final two minutes, Chattanooga (7-5) ended the game on a 9-2 run, capped off by an and-one layup by Caia Elisaldez with 0.1 seconds left to tie the game at 58. On the ensuing free throw, the junior composed herself and knocked it in to the win the game for Chattanooga.

The win marks the third in a row for the Mocs, which it had not done yes this season. It is also their third double-digit comeback win of the year as they trailed by 13 points at the 8:45 mark of the third quarter. They now lead the all-time series 2-1 as it was the first time these two sides had met since 1983. 

On Chattanooga's opening possession, Caia Elisaldez found Gianna Corbitt with a neat alley-oop passed that she layed in. However, after that it was hard for the Mocs to put the ball in the basket. They scored a season-low eight points in the first quarter as it trailed 13-8.

In the second quarter, WKU (4-7) kept pressing on as 3-pointer at the 5:53 mark put it ahead 24-15. Chattanooga started to get some offensive rhythm soon afterward, scoring 10 points in just over two minutes to put the score at 26-25. Four different Mocs scored in the run. However, the Lady Toppers finished the quarter on an 8-0 run, capped off by a banked-in 3-pointer at the top of the key as time expired to go the locker room up 34-25.

 Out of halftime, WKU scored on its opening two possessions to reach its largest lead of 13 points. That didn't stop the Mocs though as they held the Lady Toppers to just five points for the remainder of the quarter. After those two possessions, Chattanooga responded with eight straight points to put the game within reach again. Corbitt had the final basket of the quarter as the home side trailed 43-40.

In the fourth quarter, the Lady Toppers led by nine points at the 6:18 mark and by eight points with 3:25 remaining, but the Mocs kept pushing. Izzy McPherson, Corbitt, and Kalifa Ford buried three triples on three consecutive possessions and all a sudden the game was tied at 56 with just over a minute left.

Both teams then traded missed opportunities offensively, before a layup by Salma Khedr gave WKU a 58-56 lead with 11 seconds remaining. Chattanooga's original attempt to tie the game was swatted away by a WKU defender, but 1.5 seconds remained on the clock as the ball went out of bounds.

This gave time for Elisaldez's heroics on the baseline out-of-bounds play after Corbitt found her with a bounce pass. The winning free throws marks her second of the season in the final second after making two to clinch the win on Novermber 28 against Sacramento State. 

Corbitt led the Mocs with 23 points and 10 rebounds for her second consecutive double-double. She was 50% (9-18) from the field and 40% (4-10) from three. Elisaldez was Chattanooga's lone other player in double figures with 12 points and seven assists. Including her final free throw for the win, she was 100% (6-6) at the line.

In the team box score, WKU was 43.1% (22-51) from the field while Chattanooga was 38.6% (22-57). Chattanooga won the rebound battle for the fifth consecutive games, 38-29. The Mocs had 16 second-chance points off offensive boards.
 
QUOTES:
Head Coach Deandra Schirmer
"The thing I'm most proud about in this game, obviously, it was a heroic effort comeback and I'm very proud of our resiliency coming back in a close game against a really talented team. But, you know, when Western Kentucky held to single digits in the third quarter and 24 points total in the second half. That's what won us the game. And having games like this allows us as a coaching staff to reestablish that, that it always begins and ends with defense. "We're going to have games where we're shooting the ball really great. Today was not one of them. But if you can find a way to win against a really talented team and you're only shooting 38% from the field, that's takes a lot of grit. It takes a lot of resiliency."

"I would like to shout out our staff. I have the best staff in the country, and Coach Nicole Heyn drew up a hell of a set two times to get wide open shots and win us the game. The rest of the staff, you know, I could go on and on and on, but my staff is fantastic and just very blessed to have not only talented players, but a talented staff."

Caia Elisaldez, Jr., Guard
"Our coaches have done a great job of putting us in positions to succeed. I feel like now that we're getting to a point where everyone's understanding their role, it makes our chemistry so much easier and it's amazing to see."

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