KINGSTON, R.I. – Desirae Ball led four Saint Louis players in double figures, and the Billikens survived a late push by Rhode Island to defeat the Rams 58-50 Saturday afternoon at the Ryan Center.

The victory is the first in Atlantic 10 Conference play and first on the road this season for SLU, which halted a seven-game skid and improved to 6-13, 1-5. Rhode Island fell to 6-14, 1-6.

Ball scored a game-high 15 points, and Erin Nelson tallied 14. Both did most of their damage in the second half, with Ball pouring in 11 points and Nelson adding 10 in the final stanza.

Denisha Womack tossed in 11 points and Olivia Jakubicek added 10, giving the Billikens four double-digit scorers for the first time in 11 games.

Saint Louis earned a 38-31 advantage on the boards. Womack led all players with a career-high-tying 12 rebounds – giving her a second double-double this season – while Jamesia Price hauled in a career-high 10. Price added a career-high and game-high eight assists, and Jakubicek tied for game-high honors with a career-high three steals.

SLU shot 54.5 percent from the field in the second half to finish at 42.9 percent, its fourth consecutive mark of 40 percent or better. The Billikens committed a season-low 12 turnovers while recording 15 assists on 21 field goals, and they tied their season low of 11 fouls. The Bills allowed the Rams only two free throw attempts and outscored URI 14-2 at the stripe.

Rhode Island got 13 points and nine rebounds from Kerry Wallack; 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks from Kiara Palmer; and eight points apiece from Tayra Melendez and Sydney Lewis. Lewis added six rebounds.

Leading by a point at the break, Saint Louis came out on fire in the second half. After Wallack's pull-up jumper put Rhode Island in front, Ball answered with a jumper from the foul line to give the Billikens the lead for good, 27-26.

Ball's field goal began a stretch that saw SLU score on 13 of 16 possessions to build a 53-37 cushion with 9:13 remaining. Nelson netted all 10 of her second-half points during the outburst, including a three-point play and a trey on consecutive possessions, while Ball and Womack scored eight and seven points, respectively.

But Saint Louis suddenly went cold, and Rhode Island made it a one-possession game with a 13-0 flurry. Wallack buried two 3-pointers during the run, and a triple by Melendez made it 53-50 at the 2:59 mark.

The Rams failed to draw any closer, however, going scoreless on their final five possessions. The Billikens clinched it from the foul line in the final 1:05.

After SLU jumped out to a 9-3 lead, Rhode Island used an 8-0 surge to go on top 11-9. The Billikens tied it at 11 and again at 13 before taking a 17-13 lead on a jumper by Womack and a layup by Jakubicek. It was 19-15 Bills after URI's Symone Bullard traded buckets with Sadie Stipanovich.

Rhode Island regained the advantage on Wallack's turnaround jumper and Teneka Whittaker's 3-pointer, but the Billikens grabbed the first-half lead for good, 21-20, on Halee Castleman's driving layup. Saint Louis led 25-24 at intermission.