CLEVELAND, Tenn. | The UAH women's basketball team battled No. 23 Tampa through a tightly contested first half but fell 71-63 on Friday morning in the opening game of the Gulf South Conference–Sunshine State Conference Challenge.

The Chargers came out strong, building an 11-point lead after the first quarter before Tampa used the second quarter to close the gap. UAH held a narrow 38-37 advantage at halftime, but the Spartans took control in the second half, outscoring the Chargers 34-25 to secure the win. UAH shot 31 percent from the field after halftime.

Lili Wilken led all Chargers with 23 points, remaining perfect from the free-throw line at 3-for-3, while also dishing out a team-high five assists. Ivey Maddox added 11 points, connecting on 33 percent of her attempts from beyond the arc, and Paris Opelt finished just shy of a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds.

UAH will return to the court tomorrow morning to face Florida Southern at 9 a.m. as play continues in the GSC–SSC Challenge. The Chargers will then host their home opener on Wednesday, Nov. 19, against Reinhardt at 5:30 p.m. inside SportsMED Arena at Spragins Hall.