FREDERICK, Md. - The Blazers surpass last season's win total with effective high to low play on offense featuring Aliyah Taylor's (Randallstown, Md./Pikesville High School) 25-point day along with Chanelle Lee's (Brunswick, Md./Saint John's Catholic Prep) 19 to take down Albright 68-59 in Woodsboro Bank Arena on Wednesday night.
 
Inside the Box Score

Taylor shot 60 percent from the field and grabbed five boards during her career day.

Lee's part of the feat included seven rebounds.

Maya Gordon (Towson, Md./Loch Raven High School) had five assists on the day.
 
How it Happened
 
The play-by-play sheet was quite populated in the first seconds of the game as Albright won the tip and scored followed by a Hood turnover and another bucket for those in red.

The Lions would go on a 7-0 run before the Blazer regained their balance with a floater that banked off the backboard and in for Johnson and a three ball that went clean through by the Blazers leading deep shooter in Lee.

Early Hood turnovers had been something that plagued them in prior games, but the deficit was short-lived as 12 unanswered points occurred.

Hood made their way via working inside the paint while adding the new element of the deep ball; their first threes of the New Year.

The Lions struggled to have success in the paint with constant movement left to right, a handful of possessions ending in bad passes over the baseline or rejection inside the lane.

With seconds left in the half, an off the mark three was saved by Tiffany Manning (Randallstown, Md./Western Tech) and into the hands of Gordon. Gordon earned her fifth assist of the half with a hooking pass to Lee in which she took contact with her made bucket for the three-point play.

The Blazers found themselves in similar territory, a lead against admirable conference foe entering the third quarter. 

Albright started in a press that the Blue & Grey broke quickly and started scoring with eurostep by Aliyah Taylor (Randallstown, Md./Pikesville High School) that rattled in the bucket and stayed good. Taylor had reached her career high in less than three quarters of play.

The turnover bug came back along with strong rebounding by the Lions' guards that kept the game in close reach.
 
The spark came at the seven-minute mark of the fourth as the shot clock winded down, a crossover and step-back bucket by Mari Faust (Burke, VA/Lake Braddock) shook the gym and swayed the momentum.
 
Albright's pace kept them in the game, but when the ball was brought into Tiffany Manning's (Randallstown, Md./Western Tech) hands, the seasoned veteran was a comforting sight for the surrounding Blazers.
 
The Blazer's athleticism down the stretch overpowered the comeback and a see-saw game ended in favor of the home squad.

"This is a kind of win that shows that we are taking steps in the right direction," said head coach DéRonté Polite. "It doesn't matter if you are in your first year or an upperclassmen, if you are ready to make an impact the ball can be in your hands and Aliyah proved that tonight."
 
For the Opponent
CJ Apistar scored 10 while dishing two assists and hunting two steals.

Orianna Edmond scored 10 while grabbing four boards.

Analysis
Four Lions score 10 points.

The Blazers turned over the ball 22 times compared to the Lions 17.

Hood went 47 percent from the field and hit three threes.

Notes
Hood moves to 5-9, 1-1 on the season.

Albright falls to 6-7, 0-3 on the season.

The Blazers reached five wins for the first time since the 2021-22 season.

This mark the first time in 24 matchups that Hood earned a win over Albright.
 
Up Next
The squad continues the conference slate with a dance with Eastern on Saturday, January 18 at 1 p.m.. The series was split 1-1 last season, with the home team winning both meetings.
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