Women’s Weekly Basketball Notes, January 28, 2008

Women's basketball notes and game recaps for week ending January 27, 2008.

BREVARD - The Tornados split in their two games this week, moving them to 7-10 on the year ... On Wednesday night, Brevard College suffered a cold shooting night on, as they tried to overcome a double-digit halftime deficit before ultimately falling to the Lady Eagles of Carson-Newman, 72-53 ...With the Tornados down 42-25 at the halftime intermission, BC's cold night shooting the ball continued in the second half ...The Lady Eagles would push their lead to 24 points at the 9:35 mark, however, the Tornados would not give up battling back to cut the lead down to 16 with 3:41 remaining in the contest before trading baskets in the final minutes of regulation ...The Tornados shot 29.6 percent from the field in the second half and 30.2 percent for the game, the worst shooting night at home in Boshamer Gymnasium on the season for Coach Wilson's squad ... Senior co-captain Holly Krogman was the only Tornado starter in double-figures on Wednesday night, scoring 14 points while pulling down a team-high five rebounds... Freshman forward Kelsey Sill came off the BC bench to score 13 points in only 16 minutes of play, going 7-of-8 from the charity stripe ... Brevard stepped out of SAC play on Saturday afternoon, as the Tornados defeated the Lady Crusaders, 57-52 in overtime on the road in Tigerville, S.C. ... The Tornados defense stifled the Lady Crusaders for most of the first half, forcing eight first half turnovers and holding North Greenville to 10 points and scoreless for close to 11 minutes, with the Lady Crusaders ending the drought at the 2:40 mark ... However, North Greenville began to knock down some long range shots and pick up its defensive pressure in the closing minutes of the opening half to score nine points and take a 19-18 lead into the halftime break ... The Tornados struggled offensively in the first 20 minutes of play, shooting 23.8 percent from the field connecting on 5-of-21 shot attempts, including going 3-of-12 from behind the three-point line ...The offensive play picked up for both teams in the second half as the two teams combined to score 63 points, 26 more points than what was scored in the opening 20 minutes of play... Both teams traded baskets for much of the second half with neither team able to pull ahead, as there were seven lead changes and four ties... After Samantha Winn connected on 1-of-2 free throws with just under a minute left, the Tornados took a 50-48 lead into the final minute of play ... After a BC missed free throw, the Lady Crusaders came down and hit a lay-up with 0:09 to play in the game to knot the score up at 50-50. The Tornados then inbounded the ball and took it the length of the court, where they missed an open look with time winding down to score the road win... With the score knotted up at 50-50 heading into the extra frame, the Tornados would hold North Greenville to just two points in the five minute overtime period to pull away for the 57-52 road win ... The Tornados were led by Thrift's 19 points, as she connected on 5-of-8 from behind the three-point line ... Senior Holly Krogman and Winn added nine points apiece for the Tornados ... The Tornados will jump back into South Atlantic Conference play on Wednesday, January 30, when they will travel back to the Palmetto state to take on the Lady Indians of Newberry College for a 6 p.m. tip-off ... On Saturday, the Tornados will play host to the Lions of Mars Hill, as BC will look for some sort of redemption having lost to Mars Hill earlier this season ... That game is slated for a 2 p.m. start..

CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles posted a 2-0 week with wins at Brevard and at home over Lenoir-Rhyne…C-N used an overwhelming edge on the boards (95-49) to pick up the two wins…The Lady Eagles picked up a 72-53 win at Brevard on Wednesday night…Carson-Newman used an explosive first half to pick up the road win…The Lady Eagles used a 17-5 run to close the half, building a 42-25 halftime lead…Junior Angela Volentine keyed the run with seven points on 3-of-3 shooting… Volentine finished with 15 points and four rebounds…Junior Ashley Tipton led the Lady Eagles with 17 points…One of the top shooters in the nation, Tipton hit 5-of-11 three-point attempts in the win… Sophomore Shari Buford finished with 14 points, five boards, and two blocks…Senior Emily Mason had the first of two big games on the week, posting a double-double with 11 points and 14 boards…C-N outrebounded Brevard 41-20 in the win…The Lady Eagles used a 38-20 advantage in points in the paint to keep some distance between itself and Brevard…C-N added a 77-66 win Saturday night at home over Lenoir-Rhyne to complete its perfect week…Mason had a game-high 20 points in the win…She also had nine rebounds…It was the second time in three games that Mason had topped the 20-point mark (21 at Tusculum on 1/19)…Carson-Newman outrebounded Lenoir-Rhyne 30-10 in the first half to build a 38-23 halftime lead…C-N led 25-20, before going on a 13-3 run to close the half…Volentine's five quick points started the run…Freshman Amber Blackwell added a steal and a long jumper to add the push…Buford added 13 points and seven boards in the win…Junior Tykira McDaniel and Tipton each added 11 points as C-N had four player hit double-figures…C-N's 54-29 edge on the boards offset 24 turnovers…The Lady Eagles should be tied for 2nd-nationally in rebounding margin when NCAA stats are released later this week…C-N is averaging +14.1 boards per game (44.9-30.8)… The Lady Eagles have a pair of games this week…C-N hosts Catawba Wednesday night at 6 p.m., before travelling to Newberry on Saturday for a 2 p.m. tip…Newberry beat C-N earlier this season.

CATAWBA - The Catawba women split its league games last week, defeating Lincoln Memorial 85-80 then falling to Newberry 63-49 ... Against LMU, Catawba set a school record by hitting on 65.3 percent of its field goal attempts ... The ladies canned 32-of-49 for the game and a sparkling 76% in the second half ... NeKeithia Howard had a career-high with 25 points and added seven rebounds ... Hillary Hampton had 16 points and a career-best eight assists ... Against Newberry, Catawba could not repeat its shooting touch as the ladies converted a season-low 26.7 percent and a mere 24.3 percent in the final half ... A near 10 minute scoring drought saw Newberry build a 17-16 edge to 31-16 during that span ... Brittany Higgins had 11 points to pace Catawba, while Cameron Clark added 10 ... Newberry held a 44-29 edge on the boards and shot 51 percent ... The 49 points was a season-low for the Lady Indians ... Howard was held under double figures for the first time this season in the loss to Newberry ... She leads Catawba in scoring (15.8 PPG) and rebounding (7.9 RPG) ... Catawba travels to Carson-Newman on Wednesday for its lone game of the week ... The Lady Indians lead the series 25-18 ... The teams have split the season series the last three seasons..

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College women's basketball team (10-7, 2-4) lost its second straight South Atlantic Conference game on Saturday by a 77-66 score to Carson-Newman College Saturday at Holt Fieldhouse in Jefferson City, Tenn. … Redshirt freshman LaCourtney Rann (Charlotte, N.C.) led the Bears with 19 points but the Bears couldn't overcome a 20-point deficit (46-26) early in the second half in the loss … Lenoir-Rhyne was able to cut the margin to five (71-66) with 35 seconds left but Carson-Newman held on for the win … The Lady Eagles held a 54-29 advantage on the boards and limited the Bears to just 36 percent (23-of-64) shooting for the game … Sophomore forward Jacquelyn Kremer (Sevierville, Tenn.) added 12 points for the Bears, who lost for the seventh time in the last 10 games … Emily Mason (20 points and nine rebounds) spearheaded the Lady Eagles' effort … Lenoir-Rhyne remains on the road this week when it travels to Wingate (Wednesday at 6 p.m.) and Tusculum (Saturday at 2 p.m.) in a pair of South Atlantic Conference contests … Both Wingate and Tusculum are tied for first place in the league standings … Lenoir-Rhyne leads the all-time series with Tusculum, 13-12, while Wingate holds a 46-9 advantage in the career series with L-R.

LINCOLN MEMORIAL - LMU lost a close one to open the week as the Lady Railsplitters fell at Catawba 85-80. LMU led by as many as 13 points in the first half and led at halftime 46-38. Catawba got hot in the second half and ended up outscoring LMU 47-34 in the closing 20 minutes to win 85-80. LMU was led by Kara Harris with 23 points. Stephanie Wagner scored 20 points, Megan Davis added in 12 and Heather Benton scored 10 for LMU ... On Saturday the Lincoln Memorial's women's basketball team hit 9-21 shots behind the arc in Saturday night's South Atlantic Conference battle with Mars Hill College to come away with a 72-66 win over the Lions and improve to 2-5 in conference play. LMU's 42.7 percent shooting from outside the circle was spearheaded by junior Kara Harris who tied the LMU single-game record by hitting 6-10 three pointers, four of which came in the second half. Harris finished the game with a career-high 24 points to lead all scorers in the winning effort … Also making double figures for Lincoln Memorial were Andi Winney, Stephanie Wagner and Shawna Nicols. Winney put in 15 points and grabbed 7 boards to lead LMU on the glass before fouling out of the game after 35 minutes on the floor. Wagner, who hit two three pointers of her own, finished with 14 points, while Nicols had 11 points and handed out 6 assists … LMU improves to 9-8 overall and 2-5 in the SAC.

MARS HILL - Mars Hill lost both of the games last week. The Lions are now 10-7 overall and 2-4 in the SAC … In the first game of the week, the Wingate University Bulldogs topped the Mars Hill College Lions 86-81 in overtime Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action in Stanford Arena. The game featured 14 lead changes and nine ties … Junior guard Anna Atkinson (Marion, N.C.) led the Wingate attack with 16 points, eight assists, seven steals, five rebounds and a career-high two blocks. Senior forward Kasey Gillis (Indian Trail, N.C.) added 13 points and a career-high six assists. Junior guard Brittany West (Valdese, N.C.) and sophomore center Erica Crumlin (Irmo, S.C.) chipped in with 12 points apiece. Junior forward CC Brooks had 11 points while had 10. Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) had 17 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Lions. Freshman guard Brittini Young (Ramseur, N.C.) also had 17 points for Mars Hill. Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, Ga.) chipped in with 13 points … Wingate got on top early, taking an 18-11 lead five minutes into the game. The lead grew to nine at the 10:48 mark on a pair of Gillis free throws. The Lions had a big answer, going on a 14-0 run over the next five minutes, capped off by a lay-up from Jessica Blanford (Concord, N.C.). Young had eight points in the stretch … Wingate battled back to tie the game at 29-all on a 3-pointer from West. A three-point play from Young pushed the Mars Hill lead back to four. Buckets from Crumlin and Edwards tied the game with 1:42 left in the half. The Lions scored the final four points of the half, capped by a jumper from Shamia Terry (Greenville, S.C.) with 13 seconds left … The second half would be tightly contested. A 6-0 Wingate run close to the midway point gave Wingate a 55-48 lead. A lay-up from Jessey Keitt (Charlotte, N.C.) finished off the run. The Lions responded with a 10-2 run to regain the lead. Okunowo had five points in the stretch, including the go-ahead three pointer with 9:05 remaining … With the game tied at 63 with 6:47 remaining, Atkinson had a steal and a lay-up to push the Bulldogs back ahead by two. Atkinson then blocked a shot, grabbed the rebound and assisted on a lay-up from West for a four point lead. Mars Hill fought back to eventually tie the game at 69 on a jumper from Schafer … Wingate took a 73-71 lead on a lay-up from Crumlin. Mars Hill responded on the other end, getting a huge three from Young to take a one point lead with 1:02 Remaining. The Lions would add a free throw on their next possession to take a two point lead with 40 seconds left … On the ensuing possession, Atkinson found Crumlin for a lay-up to tie the game with 19 seconds to go. Keitt then got a steal on the other side, sending the game to overtime tied at 75 … The Bulldogs scored the first five points of the overtime period, four of which came from Gillis. Okunowo cut the lead to three with a jumper. Crumlin hit a pair of free throws, which was answered by a jumper from Blanford to cut the lead back to three with 2:43 left. A lay-up from Terry cut the lead to one point. Wingate again responded, Gillis made her first free throw, then missed the second. West pulled down the rebound for the Bulldogs, and the Lions were forced to foul Atkinson with 21 seconds remaining. She drained both free throws for an 85-81 lead. Atkinson would add another free throw to secure the 86-81 win … Wingate shot 47 percent from the field, while the Lions shot 50 percent. Mars Hill also hit half of their three pointers on the night (6-12). The Bulldogs racked up 17 steals and scored 32 points off of 32 Mars Hill turnovers. The Lions converted 20 turnovers into 23 points. Wingate held a 52-32 advantage in points in the paint. Mars Hill held a decisive 50-34 rebounding edge … In the second game of the week, After trailing by five points at halftime, Lincoln Memorial University out scored Mars Hill 44-33 in the second half to obtain a 72-66 victory in Tex Turner Arena Saturday night … In the second half, MHC maintained the lead until the12:25 mark when Kara Harris (Alcoa, TN) hit a 3-pointer to give LMU a 48-45 advantage. The Railsplitters would not trail again … LMU would then out score the Lions 7-1 over the next three minutes to lead by nine points (55-46) after Shawna Nicols (Milwaukee, WI) hit a shot on the baseline. MHC went on a 17-9 run to trim the deficit to just a single point (64-63) with 3:52 left in the contest after Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) converted an old-fashioned 3-point play. Harris answered hitting a 3-pointer to extend the Railsplitters advantage back to four points with 3:04 left in the game … MHC would not get any closer down the stretch. MHC scored 34 points in the paint, 27 off LMU miscues and received 13 points off their bench. The battle of the boards was even at 30 apiece … MHC was 0-8 from behind the arc, the first time this season the Lions have not hit at least one 3-pointer in a contest. Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) led MHC with 14 points converting on all seven of her attempts from the floor. Okunowo followed with 13 points while Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) added 12. Brittini Young (Ramseur, NC) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 … After trailing for the first 11 minutes of the game, Shamia Terry (Greenville, SC) hit a 15-foot jumper to give the Lions a 22-21 advantage with 8:14 left in the first frame. The Lions would close out the opening period on a 11-7 run to take a five-point lead (33-28) into the locker room at the intermission … Mars Hill travels to Tusculum College Wednesday for a 6 p.m. start and then plays at Brevard on Saturday, also at 6 p.m.

NEWBERRY - The Lady Indians went 1- 1 this week…Newberry fell in overtime to league-leading Tusculum 68-60…Tacarra Harris scored a career high 16 points and career high 11 rebounds for her first career double-double…Tonique Frasier recorded her eighth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds…Leanne Watson hit the double digit mark for the fourth time this season with 10 points while grabbing seven rebounds…Janine Ward also had seven rebounds and added five points to go along with her team high four steals…Newberry is the first conference team to hold Tusculum under 70 points…The Lady Indians knocked off Catawba 63-49 in the second game of the week…Newberry has now held its opponent under 50 points four times and under 60 points 11 times…Tonique Frasier scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to earn her ninth double-double of the season and fifth in the last six games…Ashlee Wright was the only other Lady Indian in double figures, as the senior scored 12 points…Newberry's conference best defense held Catawba to a shooting percentage of 26.7…The Lady Indians will host SAC provisional member Brevard on Wednesday before traveling to Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday.

TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers (15-3, 5-1 SAC) had its 12-game winning streak halted in an 89-80 road loss at Wingate… With the loss, Tusculum slips into a tie with Wingate for first place in the conference… The Pioneers won their 12th straight game in Wednesday's 68-60 overtime win at Newberry… Sophomore forward Stephany Neptune scored 14 points, including the game-tying bucket with 11 seconds left in regulation… Neptune finished with 14 markers and 11 rebounds, while sophomore Kat Spears added 14 points and a career-best 13 boards in the winning effort… junior Ashli Oliver finished with 10 points, including 6-for-6 from the free throw line, all in overtime... Tusculum jumped out early to an 11-1 lead and led by as many as 18 in the first half as Newberry wouldn't record its first field goal until the 12:35 mark of the opening period, missing its first 10 shots… The Pioneers moved out to its biggest advantage at 23-5 following a pair of free throws by junior Shantae Shank at the 8:24 mark… The Lady Indians would rally as TC led by a dozen (26-14) with 4:35 remaining following a Jennifer Wilson lay-up, but that would be the Pioneers final points of the period… Newberry responded with an 11-0 run, including five points by Harris as TC led 26-25 at the intermission… In the second half, the lead would exchange hands on seven occasions, along with nine ties… Newberry led 51-48 with 3:25 remaining, but junior Nikki Van Dine tied the game for TC with her clutch three-pointer from the right wing, a minute later… Newberry would take its final lead of the night on a jumper with 2:10 left on the clock… Neither team would score down the stretch until Neptune tied the game with a 17-foot jumper with 11 seconds remaining to knot the contest at 53-53. Newberry had one final chance to win the game in regulation, but a lay-up at the buzzer was off the mark sending the contest into extra time… In the overtime period, Tusculum opened with a 7-2 spurt, including a three-pointer by Van Dine as the Pioneers outscored Newberry 15-7 in the overtime frame, including eight points by Oliver… Tusculum limited Newberry to 32 percent shooting in the game, including 3-of-15 in the overtime period (20%)… The Pioneers made only three 3-pointers, but TC shutout Newberry from beyond the arc as the Lady Indians shot 0-for-9… It marked the second straight game TC has blanked an opponent from three-point territory… In the Wingate game, the Bulldogs rallied from 10-point deficit in the second half in defeating Tusculum… Van Dine led the Pioneers with 17 points, including five 3-pointers, while Neptune recorded her SAC-best 11th double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds… Shank added 17 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals, while Oliver added 11 markers in the loss… With Wingate leading 37-36 at halftime, Tusculum opened the second period with a 15-6 run, including nine unanswered points to move out to a 53-43 advantage with 16:26 remaining... The Bulldogs answered with a 16-2 spurt over the next 4:15, as Wingate moved ahead 59-55 at the 12:11 mark… Tusculum tied the game again at 59-59 following a pair of free throws by sophomore Diana Neves and a lay-up by Shank... Wingate surged ahead again with five straight points and would later put together an 11-2 spurt to move out to a 10-point advantage (77-67) with 5:39 left on the clock… Van Dine cut the deficit to seven (77-70) with her fifth trey of the day, but that's as close as the Pioneers would get… Wingate jumped out to a 10-point lead eight minutes into the game to move the Bulldogs out to an 18-8 lead… Tusculum responded with a 12-4 spurt and took its first lead of the afternoon at 28-27 on Jasmine Parker's three-point play at the 5:51 mark, before Wingate surged to take a one-point lead into the intermission… The 12 straight wins are the most consecutive victories since Tusculum became a NCAA II member and the second longest winning streak in school history… Tusculum's 15-3 start is its best beginning to a season since the 1994-95 campaign… Tusculum's 5-1 SAC start is the best since joining the league in 1999… Six TC players are scoring in double-figures in the Pioneers' six SAC games: Jasmine Gunn (13.7 ppg), Shantae Shank (12.6), Stephany Neptune (12.2), Nikki Van Dine (11.5), Ashli Oliver (10.5), Kat Spears (10.0)… The Pioneers have won their last nine home games, dating back to last season… Tusculum leads the South Atlantic Conference in scoring (80.2 ppg), scoring margin (+13.6 ppg), field goal percentage (.462), blocked shots (4.89 bpg), assist/turnover ratio (1.14) and three-point field goals per game (7.11 avg)… Neptune leads the league in rebounding (10.3 rpg) and defensive rebounds per game (7.06 rpg)… Oliver also leads the SAC averaging 3.00 three-pointers made per contest… Oliver is 17 points away from scoring her 1,000th career point… Oliver holds the all-time record at Tusculum with 241 career three-point field goals (3rd in SAC history)… She needs 30 to break the all-time SAC mark established by Presbyterian's Chris Mitchum (270) from 1992-96… Oliver has made her last 10 free throws, including six in a row against Newberry, all coming in overtime… Neptune is averaging 12 rebounds in her last five games, including a career-high 19 boards against Catawba earlier this month… Tusculum head coach Missy Tiber has led the Pioneers to three straight winning seasons, including this year. Including her four seasons at Belmont Abbey, Tiber's teams have never experienced a losing season… Tusculum has blocked a shot in 31 consecutive games… During the Missy Tiber era at Tusculum (2005-present), the Pioneers are 40-7 when scoring at least 70 points, including 14-1 this season… The Pioneers will play twice at home this week, hosting Mars Hill (Jan. 30) and Lenoir-Rhyne (Feb. 2).

WINGATE - Senior guard Kasey Gillis scored a career-high 29 points and hit a perfect 11-of-11 from the free throw line to lead the Wingate University women's basketball team past the Tusculum College Pioneers 89-80 Saturday afternoon in Cuddy Arena ... With the South Atlantic Conference victory, Wingate improves to 12-6 overall and 5-1 in the SAC. Tusculum falls to 15-3 overall and 5-1 in the league. The Pioneers had won their previous 12 games. The two teams are now tied at the top of the SAC standings ... Bulldog junior guard Anna Atkinson added 19 points and seven assists for the hosts. Freshman forward/center Stefani Shuey had 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Freshman forward Jessy Keitt chipped in 10 points ... The Bulldogs came out hot, scoring the first six points of the game. Sophomore forward Erica Crumlin tallied four of the six points. Wingate stretched the lead to 20-11 on a lay-up from freshman guard CC Brooks at the 11:15 mark. Tusculum answered with a 14-5 run, tying the game at 25 on a pair of free throws ... The Pioneers would surge in front by five, getting a three-point field goal for a 34-29 lead. The Bulldogs would finish the half on 8-2 run to take a one-point lead into the break (37-36). Atkinson had four points in the stretch. Wingate shot 41.2 percent from the field in the first half (14-of-34), while going nine-for-10 from the free throw line. Tusculum shot 38.7 percent from the floor (12-of-31), while going four-for-13 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes ... Tusculum came out on fire in the second half, going on a 17-6 run to grab a 53-43 advantage. Wingate had the answer, making a 16-2 flurry to regain the lead. Gillis scored eight points to ignite the rally. The Bulldogs would never trail again ... Wingate held a one-point lead at the 8:03 mark after a TC lay-up cut the Bulldog margin to 68-67. The Bulldogs went on a decisive 9-0 run to take a 77-67 lead with 5:39 remaining. Atkinson had four points and an assist in the decisive march. She also hit the jumper to put Wingate up by 10. The lead would not go below seven the rest of the way ... Wingate shot 47.0 percent from the field for the game (31-of-66), hitting 25-for-27 at the charity stripe (92.6 percent). Atkinson and Gillis combined to go 18-for-18 at the line. In the critical second half, the Bulldogs shot 53.1 percent from the floor (17-of-32). The Pioneers shot 41.2 percent from the field (28-of-68), while converting nine-for-23 from beyond the arc ... The Bulldogs scored 22 points following 19 Tusculum turnovers. Wingate had 10 steals, with Gillis and Atkinson getting three each. The rebounding battle was knotted at 39-39, while Wingate held a 42-32 edge in points in the paint ... The Wingate women's basketball team edged the Mars Hill College Lions 86-81 in overtime Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action at Stanford Arena. The game featured 14 lead changes and nine ties ... Atkinson led the Wingate attack with 16 points, eight assists, seven steals, five rebounds and a career-high two blocks. Gillis added 13 points and a career-high six assists for the visitors. Crumlin and junior guard Brittany West chipped in with 12 points each. Brooks had 11 points while Keitt contributed nine markers ... Wingate got on top early, taking an 18-11 lead five minutes into the game. Atkinson had five points and an assist in the early run. The lead grew to nine at the 10:48 mark on a pair of Gillis free throws. The Lions had a big answer, going on a 14-0 run over the next five minutes ... The Bulldogs battled back to tie the game 29-29 on a three-pointer from West. A three-point play pushed the Mars Hill lead back to four. Buckets from Crumlin and senior guard Kate Edwards tied the game with 1:42 left in the half. The Lions scored the final four points of the half ... The second half would be tightly contested; a 6-0 Wingate flurry at the midway point gave Wingate a 55-48 lead. A lay-up from Keitt finished the mini-run. The Lions responded with a 10-2 outburst to regain the lead with 9:05 remaining ... With the game tied at 63 with 6:47 remaining, Atkinson had a steal and a lay-up to push the Bulldogs back ahead by two. Atkinson then blocked a shot, grabbed the rebound and assisted on a lay-up from West for a four-point lead. Mars Hill fought back to eventually tie the game at 69. Wingate took a 73-71 lead on a lay-up from Crumlin ... Mars Hill responded on the other end, getting a huge three to take a one point lead with 1:02 to play in regulation. The Lions would add a free throw on their next possession to take a two-point lead with 40 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, Atkinson found Crumlin for a lay-up to tie the game with 19 seconds to go. Keitt then got a steal on the other side, sending the game to overtime tied at 75 ... The Bulldogs scored the first five points of the overtime period, with four from Gillis. Mars Hill cut the lead to three with a two-pointer. Crumlin hit a pair of free throws, which was answered by a Lion field goal to cut the lead back to three with 2:43 left ... A Mars Hill lay-up cut the Wingate lead to one point. Wingate again responded, as Gillis made her first free throw, then missed the second. West pulled down the rebound for the Bulldogs. The Lions were forced to foul Atkinson with 21 seconds remaining. She drained both free throws for an 85-81 lead. Atkinson would add another free throw to secure the 86-81 win ... Wingate shot 47.1 percent from the field (33-of-70), while the Lions shot 50 percent (33-of-60). Mars Hill also hit half of its three-pointers on the night (six-for-12). The Bulldogs racked up 17 steals and scored 32 points from 32 Mars Hill turnovers. The Lions converted 20 Bulldog turnovers into 23 points. Wingate held a 52-32 advantage in points in the paint. Mars Hill held a decisive 50-34 rebounding edge ... Wingate hosts Lenoir-Rhyne Wednesday night (6 p.m.) in Cuddy Arena. Last year, the two teams split two games. On Feb. 21, 2007, Bulldog guard Tanetra Barrett scored a career-high 40 points to lead the hosts to a 90-76 victory over Lenoir-Rhyne College in Cuddy Arena. Wingate captured its fourth straight SAC regular season title (shared or outright) with the victory ... On Jan. 27, 2007, Lenoir-Rhyne guard Amber Holt tallied a career-high 30 points to lead the Bears to a 94-67 victory over Wingate in Shuford Gymnasium on the Lenoir-Rhyne campus. The Bears shot 63.5 percent (33-of-52) from the floor during the contest. Barrett topped the Wingate charts with 25 points.