The University of West Georgia women’s basketball team made history on Wednesday night, earning the program’s first win in seven tries at Columbus State University, claiming a 71-64 road victory at the Lumpkin Center in Columbus.

The Wolves (5-3) led 36-28 at halftime and built as much as a 21-point lead early in the second half and then had to withstand a late push by the Cougars (3-3), who cut the lead down to seven points on two different occasions in the closing minutes.

Columbus State, which entered the game as the nation’s top 3-point shooting ball club at 46 percent, struggled from the floor, connecting on just 4-of-13 attempts (24 percent) from downtown and committing 21 turnovers in the setback.

The Cougars, who play out of the Peach Belt Conference, were without leading scorer Taren White (13.8 ppg), as the junior guard was sidelined with an injury. CSU actually had just nine healthy players on Wednesday, though the Wolves weren’t at full strength, either, playing without the services of junior forward Breonna Mosley.

West Georgia, which committed 30 turnovers in the win, shot 47 percent from the floor, led by sophomore forward and Villa Rica High School product JaDechia Hill, who finished with 14 points. Sophomore guard Brittany Johnson added 13 points and senior guard Mone’ Peoples posted 10 points.

West Georgia returns home for its final two games before the holiday break, playing host to Auburn-Montgomery at 2 p.m. on Saturday at The Coliseum, which will be followed by a Tuesday home date against Coastal Georgia. Tip-time for that game is slated for 5:30 p.m.