BALTIMORE, Md. – The Hampton University women's basketball team had a scare from Coppin State on Monday evening at the Physical Education Complex, but the Lady Pirates held on for their ninth straight win, taking the game 68-59.

The Lady Pirates (18-5, 9-0 MEAC) are now 11-1 on the road.

Senior guard Olivia Allen (Kildeer, Ill.) led the Lady Pirates with a career-high 25 points, hitting five 3-pointers. Senior forward Keiara Avant (Chesapeake, Va.), the reigning MEAC Player of the Week, added 16 points and a team-high 14 rebounds for her 14th double-double of the season.

Junior guard Nicole Hamilton (Hampton, Va.) added 15 points, and senior forward Ariel Phelps (Virginia Beach, Va.) tied her career high with 12 rebounds.

Coppin State opened the game up 9-2 after a layup from Leola Spotwood, but the Lady Pirates went on a 10-1 run to take a 12-10 lead at the 13:42 mark after a jumper from junior forward Alyssa Bennett (Hampton, Va.). Bennett put Hampton up 16-11 with 12:39 left in the half with a jumper that capped a 14-2 Hampton run.

The Lady Pirates' lead was cut to 16-15 with 12:12 left in the first half after a basket from Shawntae Payne, but Hampton answered with a 14-0 run to take a 30-15 lead at the 6:46 mark after a 3-pointer from Allen.

Allen hit five treys in the first half, tallying 19 points to lead all scorers as Hampton took a 41-22 lead into the locker room. Since that 16-15 lead, the Lady Pirates closed the first half out-scoring Coppin State 25-7.

Coppin State only managed two field goals in the final 12:12 of the first half.

Allen hit a pair of free throws with 15:13 to play to give the Lady Pirates a 46-26 lead, before Coppin State went on a 6-0 run to close the lead to 46-32 at the 13:18 mark after a Spotwood layup. An Ashle Craig jumper with 12:28 to play cut Hampton's lead to 49-34.

The Lady Pirates lived at the free throw line early in the second half, with eight of their first 10 points of the frame coming from the charity stripe. Hamilton converted a 3-point play with 10:12 left to stop the drought and give Hampton a 54-36 lead.

Jaleah Holsey hit a jumper and a 3-pointer to cut Hampton's lead to 58-43 with 8:13 to play. A pair of Spotwood free throws at the 7:57 mark cut the lead to 58-45. Sophomore guard Kenia Cole (Burtonsville, Md.) hit a trey with 5:04 to play to give Hampton a 64-48 lead.

Hamilton added a layup with 3:55 to play to put the Lady Pirates up 66-50. Of Hampton's six second-half field goals, Hamilton had four.

Holsey cut the lead to 66-56 with 2:44 to play with a jumper, before Larrisa Carter hit two free throws with 1:41 to play to cut the lead to 66-58. Allen stopped the momentum with a fastbreak layup with 56 seconds left, giving the Lady Pirates a 68-58 lead.

The Lady Pirates shot 32.2 percent (19-for-59) from the floor and hit seven of their 17 3-pointers (41.2 percent). Hampton was also 23-for-33 (69.7 percent) from the free throw line. Hampton also held a 28-19 edge in points off turnovers and a 19-8 edge in second-chance points.

Coppin State (9-14, 5-5 MEAC) shot just 26.7 percent (16-for-60) from the floor, but the Lady Eagled held a 49-44 edge on the glass.

Spotwood led the Lady Eagles with 19 points.

The Lady Pirates will return to action next Monday, Feb. 11, when they return to the HU Convocation Center to take on Delaware State at 6 p.m. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.