Women’s Weekly Basketball Notes, January 7, 2008
Women's basketball notes and game recaps for week ending January 6, 2008
BREVARD - The Tornados split in their two games this week, moving them to 5-5 on the year ... On Thursday night, the Tornados picked up their fifth win of the season, a 64-62 home victory over Virginia Intermont College ... Senior Holly Krogman became the Brevard College All-Time Career Points Leader in women's basketball history, as she poured in a team-high 16 points ... Sophomore Samantha Winn had 14 points and nine rebounds, while Lindsay Thrift came up big on Thursday night, adding 12 points from off the bench ... Freshman forward Amanda Whitaker had 13 points in 21 minutes of action, as she controlled the paint for BC ... On Saturday, the Tornados played their first road SAC game, where they were unable to overcome an ice-cold shooting night and fall to the Lions of Mars Hill, 76-42 ... The Lions proved to be too much down low for the Tornados, as Mars Hill outscored BC 40-10 in the paint on the game ... The Tornados shot a season-low 26.5 percent, with only one person scoring in double-figures for the contest ... Senior Holly Krogman once again led the Tornados with 10 points ...Brevard College (5-5) will look to bounce back from the loss this Wednesday, January 9, when they will return home to host the Bears' of Lenoir-Rhyne ... That game is slated for a 6 p.m. tip-off ... Then the Tornados will start a three-game road trip on Saturday, January 12, when they will travel to Harrogate, TN to face-off with Lincoln Memorial in SAC action.
CARSON-NEWMAN - Carson-Newman posted a 1-2 record over the holiday break…C-N is now 6-7 on the season and falls to 1-1 in SAC play…The Lady Eagles dropped West Virginia State 86-65 at the Red Roof Classic in Institute, West Virginia on December 29…C-N outrebounded the Yellow jackets 50-30 in the win…Shari Buford led the way with 20 points and five boards…Emily Mason added 10 points and 11 boards for a double-double…Ashley Tipton made 6-of-7 from three-point range in the win, she had 18 points…Tipton's effort was one made three-pointer from tying the school record set by Kandi Duncan against L-R in 1999…6-of-7 is tied for the best game in school history (minimum of 5 attempts), tying Michelle Sharpe ('02 vs. Wingate) and Amanda Jackson ('03 vs. Bluefield St.), each of whom had 6-for-7 games from behind the arc…Tipton is shooting a numbing 56 percent, and will likely be No. 1 in the nation in three-point field goal percentage when NCAA statistics are released this week…The Lady Eagles dropped their final two games of the break…C-N fell 79-58 to the University of Charleston on December 30 in Charleston, West Virginia…Buford led the way with a double-double, posting 11 points and 10 rebounds…Emily Mason added 11 and 7…Both Buford and Mason made the All-Red Roof Classic Tournament Team…Charleston shot 55 percent (18-of-33) in the first half to build a 41-24 lead at the break…C-N played shorthanded, with junior Tashea Ledbetter playing through a sprained ankle, and Ashley Kyle and Tipton limited by illness…Carson-Newman dropped its SAC home-opened Wednesday night to Newberry, 66-53…The Loss let a near-perfect night by junior Angela Volentine slip away…The North Platte, Nebraska-native was 7-of-8 and finished with 15 points…At one point in the second half, she hit four straight shots to keep the Lady Eagles close…Her perfect night slipped away on a three point attempt that rolled off the rim in the closing minutes…Lindsey Eggleston chipped in 10 points and four rebounds in the loss…The Lady Eagle are doing some things very well statistically…C-N is outrebounding opponents by an average of 13 boards per game (44.4-31.5)…The Lady Eagles are also shooting an impressive 41.5 percent (73-of-175) from three-point range…The Lady Eagles are also shooting 73 percent at the free throw line as a team…Defensively, C-N is holding opponents below 40 percent from the floor (.399)…Four Lady Eagles are averaging 9+ points per game, led by Buford (11.6)and Tipton (10.7)…Carson-Newman has a BYE in the SAC Wednesday…The Lady Eagles will face Mars Hill on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Mars Hill, North Carolina at Burt Sanford Arena.
CATAWBA - The Catawba women have lost three straight since returning from the break ... The ladies took a 73-59 win over Saint Paul's in its last game before Christmas, but lost the rematch with the Tigers on New Year's Eve 61-59 and dropped both games at the Flagler Saints Tournament ... Catawba fell 62-56 to Florida Tech and 69-63 to host Flagler ... NeKeithia Howard had 21 points and Hillary Hampton a season-best 18 points in the home win over Saint Paul's ... Sicilia LoSauro came off the bench to score 17 points in the loss at Saint Paul's while Howard added 17 points and eight rebounds ... The ladies held a 52-37 edge on the boards in the loss to Florida Tech, but shots just 33 percent ... Howard had a double-double with 16 points and 12 boards, while LoSauro added 15 points and a career-high nine rebounds ... Catawba shot nearly 50 percent against Flagler, but had 22 turnovers ... Howard again led the way with 17 points and LoSauro followed with 12 ... The Lady Indians cut a 12-point deficit with just over three minutes to play to a single point with 1:02 left, but could not tie the contest ... Catawba has averaged just 59.3 points in the three games since the break with Howard (15.7) and LoSauro (14.7) accounting for over half the total ... Brittany Higgins has missed the last three games with a concussion ... Catawba returns to action on Wednesday, hosting Wingate in a league contest ... The Bulldogs have won five of the last six from Catawba since snapping an 11-game losing streak to the Lady Indians.
LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College women's basketball team (8-4, 1-1) lost its first South Atlantic Conference game of the season on Saturday, 84-69, to the hands to the hands of Tusculum College at Shuford Memorial Gymnasium … Tusculum led 31-29 at halftime and never lost its lead after intermission … L-R cut the lead to one twice but Tusculum pulled away in the final two minutes, scoring the last nine points of the game … The Pioneers connected on 24-of-33 free throws and were led by Nikki Van Dine's 17 points … The Bears lost despite four players scoring in double figures including a team-high 17 points from sophomore guard Jami Safrit (Hickory, N.C.) … Redshirt freshman guard LaCourtney Rann (Charlotte, N.C.) scored 14 points to push her double-digit scoring streak to seven games … Over Christmas Break, Lenoir-Rhyne defeated Queens, 70-53, on Wednesday, January 2, in Charlotte, N.C., after losing both games of the Heritage Bank Holiday Classic in Morrow, Ga.: 66-51 to Clayton State (Saturday, December 29) and 92-85 to Lander (Sunday, December 30) … Lenoir-Rhyne will visit Brevard (Wednesday, January 9 at 6 p.m.) and Newberry (Saturday, January 12 at 2 p.m.) this week … L-R leads the all-time series against both Brevard (2-0) and Newberry (19-8).
LINCOLN MEMORIAL - The Lady Railsplitters compiled a 2-1 record over the break … On Dec. 18 they played the first of a two game swing through the state of Indiana as they defeated Oakland City 66-58. The Lady Railsplitters used defense, rebounding and free throw shooting to defeat the Lady Oaks for the second time this season … The Lady Railsplitters forced 21 OCU turnovers while out rebounding their opponent 42-31 and hitting 15-18 shots from the charity strip for 83.3 percent shooting from the line … LMU junior Shawna Nicols led all scorers with 20 points, 14 of which came in the first half of play. Nicols also led the team in rebounding, pulling 11 boards in nearly 36 minutes of play … Junior guard Kara Harris scored all of her 11 points in the second half, including two three-pointers late in the game that helped to lift the LMU women to their fifth win of the season … Senior forward Heather Benton was the only other Lady Railsplitter in double-figures as she scored 10 points of 5-10 shooting from the floor … Two nights later LMU picked up the 82-39 win at St. Joseph's. The Lady Railsplitters took a 5-4 lead with 18:25 to go in the first half and never looked back … LMU sophomore Andi Winney, who had her sixth career double-double with her 24 points and 12 rebounds, led all scorers in the contest … Junior guard Kara Harris added in 11 points. Heather Benton scored eleven and Stephanie Wagner (Elkhart, IN) had 10 points. Shawna Nicols also had 12 rebounds in addition to seven assists … This past Saturday LMU dropped a close one, losing 65-63 at Wingate … Andi Winney led LMU once again, this time with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman forward Megan Davis added 14 points for the Lady Railsplitters and Heather Benton scored 10 … Wingate held a 57-43 lead with nine minutes remaining in the game but LMU began to chip away at the lead, eventually tying the game 63-63 with 2:55 to go … Wingate scored the go-ahead basket a few seconds later and LMU had several chances to tie the game or take the lead but none of the shots went through the net. LMU goes to 6-5 on the season and will travel to Tusculum on Dec. 9.
MARS HILL - Mars Hill went 4-1 over the break. The Lions are now 8-3 on the season … The Lions' women's basketball team defeated Concord University 73-67 in the first round of the Chatham Orthopedics Holiday Classic in the Armstrong Sports Center. The event was hosted by Armstrong Atlantic State University … Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) led MHC with 15 points and six rebounds followed by Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) with 14 points and three steals. Shannon Lee (Four Oaks, NC) added nine points and the same number of rebounds while Shamia Terry (Greenville, SC) pulled down her career high 13 boards in the win … Lee hit a jumper just outside the lane 30 seconds into the contest and the Lions would never trail again. The Lions' largest lead of 14 points (32-18) in the first frame came at the 1:57 mark after Okunowo hit a layup … MHC enjoyed a 32-20 halftime advantage. MHC came out of the locker room and out scored Concord, 8-2 to take their largest lead of 18 points (40-22) with 16:52 left in the final period after Blanford scored in the paint … Concord would not die and trimmed the Lions advantage to just three points (70-67) with eight seconds left in regulation after Becca Flanagan hit a shot from behind the arc. After a quick foul on the ensuing in-bounds play, Terry went to the other end of the floor and calmly sank a pair of shots at the charity stripe to seal the win … Samm Nester led Concord with a game high 22 points and seven rebounds. Flanagan added 14 points in the loss. MHC hit 45.3 percent (24-53) of their field goals and out rebounded Concord, 42-31. Concord only hit 37.5 percent (21-56) of their field goals and 15.4 percent (2-13) of their 3-point attempts … In the second game over the break, The Lions' women's basketball team lost to Armstrong Atlantic State University 66-64 in the second round of the Chatham Orthopedics Holiday Classic … After trailing by 12 (40-28) at the break, the Lions stormed back and took an eight point lead with 3:11 left in regulation only to have that advantage foiled by the Pirates. Lindsey Holmes hit a 3-pointer to start the second half and give AASU their largest lead of 15 points (43-28) at the 19:49 mark in the final stanza … MHC then went on a 36-13 run over the next 16 minutes to lead 64-56 with 3:11 left in the contest after Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) hit a shot from behind the arc. Unfortunately, that would be the last points the Lions could muster for the remainder of the contest while AASU put 10 unanswered points on the board to pull off the victory … Dartayvia Thomas hit one of two free throw attempts with 16 seconds left to put the Pirates up for good (65-64). MHC had a good look at the basket on their final possession but the Lions shot with three ticks left missed its mark and Kaneetha Gordon pulled down the loose ball. After a quick foul by the Lions, she converted one of her two attempts at the charity stripe to make the final tally 66-64 … Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) and Schafer led MHC scoring 18 and 17 points in the game, respectively. Schafer scored 15 in the second half and added three boards and five assists in the game. Shannon Lee (Four Oaks, NC) pulled down 11 rebounds to go along with eight points on the night … MHC won the rebound battle 40-35 and scored almost half of their points (32) in the paint … In the third game over the break, the Lions' women's basketball team won on the road at Virginia Intermont College, 86-61 … Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) led MHC with a game high 28 points. She added six rebounds. Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) came off the bench to score 15 points and pull down five boards while Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) tallied 14 points and three rebounds … After leading by just seven points (42-37) at the break, the Lions out scored the Cobras 44-26 in the final stanza to cruise to the 25-point victory. MHC hit 56.9 percent (33-58) of their field goals as opposed to VIC who connected on only 39.3 percent (22-56) of their attempts from the floor. MHC out rebounded VIC, 40-22 … In the fourth game of the week, Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) scored 22 points and pulled down five rebounds to lead the Lions' women's basketball team to a 86-64 win over King College in Stanford Arena … Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) hit a shot in the lane with 17:46 left in the first half and the Lions would never trail again. MHC went on to lead by as many as 12 points (39-27) in the opening period after Blanford hit a layup with 18 seconds left in the first frame. MHC went into the locker room with a 39-29 advantage … The Lions came out in the second half and scored 13 unanswered points to take a 23-point lead with 15:47 left in regulation after Roberts hit a bank shot … MHC led by as many as 24 points with 12:59 left in the contest after Blanford nailed a shot from behind the arc. King could only trim the deficit to 19 points the rest of the way … Solid shooting and rebounding led to the Lions' win. MHC hit 51.6 percent (32-62) of their field goals opposed to KC connecting on only 38.1 percent (24-63) of their attempts. The Lions out rebounded the Tornados, 44-29. MHC scored 38 points in the paint, 21 off King miscues, 14 second chance points and added 16 off the break. MHC was 18-21 at the foul line … Shamia Terry (Greenville, SC) turned in a solid performance for the Lions scoring 10 points with five rebounds, the same number of assists and a game high four steals. Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) and Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) scored 13 points apiece while Brittini Young (Ramseur, NC) came off the bench to score 10 points and dish out six assists in her college debut. Young was injured during the first part of the season … In the final game over the break, Mars Hill won their fourth straight game by defeating Brevard College 76-42 in Stanford Arena … MHC jumped out to a 24-15 lead with 8:39 left in the first frame after Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) hit a shot in the lane. Twenty-two of the Lions first 24 points were scored in the paint. MHC led by as many as 11 points (34-23) in the first half after Shamia Terry (Greenville, SC) hit a pair of shots at the charity stripe. The Lions maintained a comfortable lead the remainder of the first period and went into the locker room ahead, 39-28 … The second half was all Mars Hill. The Lions out scored the Tornados, 37-14 in the final stanza to win by 34 points. Brevard hit only 16.7 percent (5-30) of their field goals in the final half. MHC finished the game hitting 50 percent (32-64) of their attempts. The Lions also out rebounded BC, 40-30. Mars Hill scored 40 points in the paint, 21 off BC miscues, 13 second chance points and received 33 points off their bench … Four players recorded double figures in scoring for MHC led by Blanford with 13. She added six rebounds and three assists. Shannon Lee (Four Oaks, NC) came off the bench to score 12 points and pull down nine boards while Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, NC) and Brittini Young (Ramseur, NC) scored 11 points apiece. Young also tallied four assists in the win. Lee was 6-7 from the floor … MHC will return to action on January 9 when they play at SAC rival Newberry College. Game time is set for a 6 p.m. start. The Lions will then return to Stanford Arena on Saturday to host Carson-Newman College at 2 p.m.
NEWBERRY - The Lady Indians went 3-1 over the Christmas break…On Dec. 17, 2007 Newberry started the break with a five point loss at Limestone College…Tonique Frasier recorded her first of three Christmas break double-doubles with 25 points and 15 rebounds…After Christmas, the Lady Indians got back on track with a 39 point win over visiting Mercy College 85-46…Carnicha Bellinger led the way with 23 points…Hanna Porter contributed 17 points…Frasier got her second double-double of the break with 14 points and 12 rebounds...The Lady Indians finished 2007 with a 35 point win over Conference Carolinas' Converse College 86-54…Leanne Watson had a game-high 17 points…Three other Lady Indians scored in double digits including Tacarra Harris (15), Frasier (12), and Bellinger (10)…On Jan. 5, 2008 Newberry started 2008 on the right foot with a 66-53 road win over Carson-Newman…Frasier had 26 points and 12 rebounds to earn her third double-double over the break…Bellinger added 12 points as the Lady Indians overcame a half time deficit…Newberry gets into the heart of its SAC schedule as the Lady Indians host Mars Hill on Wednesday at 6 p.m. and Lenoir-Rhyne at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
TUSCULUM - The Tusculum women's basketball team is riding a seven-game winning streak, including a pair of wins since Dec. 17… Of those seven wins, six have been on the road, including victories at Virginia State (70-57) and Lenoir-Rhyne (84-69)… In Tusculum's 13-point win at Virginia State, freshman guard Jasmine Gunn nearly recorded a triple-double with 16 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds… Sophomore forward Stephany Neptune tallied her third consecutive double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds… Neptune leads the SAC with seven double-doubles this season… After trailing 6-0 to start the game, Tusculum rattled off a 12-0 run… TC added a 9-0 run in the second half to put the game out of reach… In the Pioneers' SAC opener at Lenoir-Rhyne, junior Nikki Van Dine led Tusculum with 17 points and eight rebounds… Sophomore Kat Spears finished with 15 points and nine boards, while Gunn accounted for 13 points and seven assists… Junior Ashli Oliver holds the all-time record at Tusculum with 228 career three-point field goals… Oliver, TC's leading scorer (13.7 ppg) needs 43 to break the all-time SAC mark… Five Tusculum players are averaging in double-figure scoring, including Oliver, Neptune (12.8 ppg), Van Dine (10.4 ppg), Gunn (10.3 ppg) and Shantae Shank (10.8 ppg)… Van Dine has started her TC career making her first 15 free throws, including Saturday's 6-for-6 effort at Lenoir-Rhyne… Tusculum has blocked a shot in 26 straight games… Neptune's string of 14 straight games with a block came to an end at L-R… Neptune leads the SAC in rebounding (10.3 rpg)… During the Coach Missy Tiber era at Tusculum (2005-present), the Pioneers are 35-6 when scoring at least 70 points… TC is 11-0 this season when scoring 70 or more points… Tusculum will play its first home game in over a month when the Pioneers host Lincoln Memorial… TC will host Catawba on Saturday.
WINGATE - The Wingate University Bulldogs compiled a 1-1 overall record during the week, falling at Augusta State Thursday 80-70, then defeating conference foe Lincoln Memorial 65-63 Saturday afternoon in Cuddy Arena. Wingate is 7-5 overall and 2-0 in the South Atlantic Conference. The Bulldogs have won 11 consecutive home games dating back to last season. Before the holiday break, Wingate took an 87-85 win at Lander Dec. 19 ... On Saturday against LMU, junior guard Anna Atkinson led the way with 20 points, 12 assists and five steals. It was her second consecutive game with double figure assists. The ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® candidate has had at least five assists in every game this season. Senior guard Kasey Gillis added a career-high 19 points, while going eight-of-11 from the field. She has now scored in double-figures in five consecutive games. Sophomore post Erica Crumlin added eight points and a team-high six rebounds ... After a lay-up from freshman guard CC Brooks, Atkinson ended the first half with a steal and a lay-up to give Wingate a 36-27 advantage at intermission. The nine-point lead was Wingate's largest advantage in the first half. The Bulldogs shot 45 percent in the first half and converted 10-of-12 from the free throw line. Lincoln Memorial shot 34 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes, while going four-for-four from the line ... A Crumlin free throw, followed by a Crumlin jumper stretched the Bulldog lead to 49-36 with 13:39 remaining. A three-pointer and a jumper from LMU cut the lead down to eight. An Atkinson lay-up and a pair of Gillis jumpers gave Wingate its largest lead of the game at 57-43 with nine minutes remaining ... Lincoln Memorial would chip away at the lead over the next several minutes, eventually tying the game at 61 with 3:22 remaining. Atkinson hit a jumper to put Wingate up 63-61. The Railsplitters again responded with a lay-up to tie the game at 63 at the 2:55 plateau. The Bulldogs once again turned to Atkinson, who hit a jumper in the paint to give Wingate a 65-63 lead. The Atkinson hoop would represent the final points of the game. The Railsplitters had several chances to tie the game in the final two minutes, but missed three shots and recorded a turnover ... Wingate shot 45 percent from the field for the game (27-of-60). Lincoln Memorial shot 37.7 percent (26-of-69). The Railsplitters held a 42-35 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs took advantage of an aggressive defense, forcing 21 turnovers. Wingate had 15 steals Saturday. Atkinson's five thefts topped the Wingate charts. Bulldog freshman forward Jessy Keitt added three ... Wingate had four players in double figures Thursday afternoon at Augusta State. Senior guard Kate Edwards led the way with 15 points. Junior guard Brittany West added 13. Gillis chipped in with 11 while Brooks had 10. Atkinson had five points, 11 assists and five steals for the Bulldogs, who lost for the first time in over a month. Wingate had assists on 18 of 22 made baskets, but shot only 36 percent from the field while Augusta State shot 51 percent for the game ... Atkinson had 24 points, seven assists and four steals, while going 10-for-10 from the line to lead Wingate past Lander December 19. Gillis had 17 points and six assists and three steals. Crumlin added 12 for the Bulldogs. Wingate swept the season series with Lander 2-0. Lander was picked number two in the Peach Belt Conference pre-season coaches' poll ... Atkinson leads the Bulldogs with 14.8 points, 9.0 assists and 4.0 steals per game. She leads the conference in assists and steals; she also ranks third nationally in assists. Edwards and Gillis are right behind Atkinson, averaging 10.5 and 10.3 points per game, respectively. Crumlin is averaging 9.4 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game. She leads the team and the conference with 2.0 blocked shots per game ... Wingate returns to action Monday night, hosting Johnson C. Smith at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs travel to Catawba Wednesday night for a 6 p.m. start.