DAHLONEGA – The No. 6 University of North Georgia (UNG) women's basketball suffered its first loss of the season in a 77-64 defeat against Columbus State (CSU) at Lynn Cottrell Arena at the UNG Convocation Center Monday night.

The loss drops UNG to 13-1 overall on the season with a 3-1 mark in Peach Belt Conference play. 

Despite the loss, the Nighthawks had four players in double figures led by senior guard Ansley Hall who had 16 points to go along with three rebounds and three assists. Hall's night was highlighted by a season-high four made three-pointers.

Graduate forward Emily Trushel had a near double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. She also knocked down three triples while chipping in a block and a steal defensively. 

Sophomore forward Kendall Emener had a good night with 12 points and eight rebounds while adding a block and two steals on defense. Emener went 5-for-6 from the floor on the night as well.

Freshman guard Averie Jones was the final Nighthawk in double figures as she performed in all areas with 10 points, six rebounds and five assists. 

The game started off on a rocky note for UNG as the Cougars jumped out to an early 11-2 lead. However, the Nighthawks responded with a 12-0 run to end the quarter with a 14-11 lead of its own. 

The second quarter was a back-and-forth affair that saw CSU take a 38-37 lead into the locker room at halftime. 

In the third quarter, it looked like UNG was going to go on a run that would seal the game and cement a program record 14-0 start to the season. An 8-0 Nighthawk run gave UNG a 51-45 lead with 3:41 to play in the quarter. 

The lead grew to its largest of the night at nine points with 1:48 remaining after Hall knocked down her fourth triple of the game. After 30 minutes of play, UNG led 57-51 and was in the driver's seat.

However, everything changed in the fourth quarter. UNG's offense disappeared as CSU quickly tied the game at 57-57. UNG would not score its first points of the quarter until the 6:12 mark with a layup from Emener. By then, the Nighthawks had conceded a 13-0 run to the Cougars. The layup made it a 64-59 ball game and kept UNG within striking distance. 

The Nighthawks would not score again until Trushel went to the free throw line with 3:13 remaining. She knocked in a pair to bring UNG within eight points at 69-61 but time was of the essence.

The layup from Emener and free throws from Trushel would be the only four points the Nighthawks would muster in the fourth quarter until the final play of the game. Blackstock hit a three-pointer to end the game, but by then the result had already been decided. 

CSU out scored UNG 26-7 in the fourth quarter to complete the upset. The Cougars went 9-for-15 (60 percent) from the floor and 3-for-6 from downtown in the 10-minute stretch. 

In total, the Nighthawks were limited to 22-of-57 (38.6 percent) shooting from the floor, their second-lowest mark of the season. UNG committed 22 turnovers resulting in 15 CSU points. 

Now UNG has a short turnaround before its next game as the Nighthawks will welcome Lander on Wednesday, Jan. 15. Tip off from Lynn Cottrell Arena is set for 5:30 p.m.