HONOLULU— The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team picked up a much-needed road victory on Friday afternoon, upending Long Beach State 77-75 at Walter Pyramid.
 
The Rainbow Wahine (6-6, 5-5) picked up their first win at Long Beach State since 2016, marking the last time the 'Bows recorded a sweep over their conference foes. The Beach (11-6, 10-5) have now dropped five in a row after winning their first ten games in conference play.
 
Senior Amy Atwell turned in one of the best games of her career, tying her previous career-high of 25 points from Jan. 5, 2019, when she scorched Cal State Fullerton on the road. Atwell went 8-of-16 from the floor, including 4-of-8 from three-point territory, while tallying 5-for-8 from the charity stripe and added nine rebounds.
 
The two teams battled from start to finish as the matchup featured 20 lead changes and 12 ties. Neither team held a lead of more than seven points throughout the day, but it was UH dictating the pace by holding the lead for over 22 minutes.
 
As the back and forth affair rolled into the fourth quarter, leads were kept at a maximum of four points, including UH at 64-60 with under seven minutes on the clock. LBSU took the lead at 72-71 with just over three minutes left to play, but Atwell drained two free throws to give the 'Bows the lead. Two more free throws by senior Jadynn Alexander extended the lead to three, but it quickly vanished after a three-point bucket by Naomi Hunt tied the score at 75.
 
The final bucket came with 1:07 left in regulation as Atwell nailed a pullup jumper from the free throw line to give UH its final lead at 77-75. The defense held strong limiting chances for the Beach, giving the 'Bows their third road win of the year.
 
Freshman Daejah Phillips came off the bench to provide 10 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Phillips has now scored double-digit points in four consecutive games. Fellow freshman Nnenna Orji provided her first true breakout game with 11 points, four assists, and three rebounds, also off the bench.
 
The 'Bows continue to be one of the best rebounding teams in the conference as they pulled down 41 boards for a 41-31 advantage over LBSU. Sophomore Kasey Neubert played the biggest role in the glass wiping feud as she hauled in a game-high 11.
 
Turnovers did plague UH, committing 17 on the day, but did balance it out in terms of assists to turnovers ratio, as they collected 17 dimes.
 
UH will wrap up their final road trip of the season with game two against the Beach on Saturday at 2 p.m. HT.