Weekly Women’s Basketball Notes, February 4, 2008
Women's basketball notes and game recaps for week ending February 3, 2008.
BREVARD - The Brevard College women's basketball team fell to 7-12 overall this season, as they dropped both of their contests this past week ... On Wednesday night, The Tornados wrapped up their first time through the tough SAC schedule, as they fell on the road to the SAC preseason favorite Newberry Lady Indians, 64-54 ... The Tornados jumped out of the gate on fire taking an early 10-0 lead in the first 2:30 of the first half ... Yet BC would go cold from the floor for over eight minutes in the half and the Lady Indians came storming back to outscore the Tornados, 13-0 during that stretch ... A three-pointer by freshman Amanda Whitaker ended the Tornados scoring drought at with 1:00 remaining in the first half, cutting the Lady Indians lead to three at 28-25 ... The Tornados would score five points in the final minute of the first half to head into the halftime break down only four at 31-27 ... In the second half, BC's Krogman scored two quick lay-ups in the opening minutes of the half to knot the score up at 31-31 with 17:53 remaining in the game. However, a lay-up by Newberry's Leanne Watson at the 17:02 mark gave the Lady Indians the lead for good, as they held off the Tornados in the final 17 minutes of play ... BC was able to cut the lead to four points on numerous occasions in the second half, but couldn't get any closer as Newberry held off the Tornados for the 64-54 home win ... Leading the way for Brevard was senior Holly Krogman with 18 points and 10 rebounds, collecting her first double-double of the season ... Freshman Amanda Whitaker and sophomore Samantha Winn both had 10 points and six rebounds on the night ... On Saturday afternoon, the Tornados took on rival and SAC foe Mars Hill for the second time in less than a month, this time taking on the Lady Lions at home in Boshamer Gymnasium ... Despite a valiant effort, the Tornados could not avenge their earlier season loss to the Lady Lions, falling on Saturday 77-62 ... Although the Tornados never led in the first half, BC never trailed by more than eight points in the first 20 minutes of play as both teams played fairly even basketball ... Both teams shot 6-of-6 from the free throw line and over 50 percent from the field with the Tornados shooting 52.4 percent and the Lady Lions shooting right at 50 percent ... The Tornados kept it close and remained in striking distance of Mars Hill in the first half, relying on their outside shooting as they knocked down 4-of-8 from the three-point line ... The Tornados made a late first half run to cut into the Mars Hill lead making it 36-32 at the half ... In the second half of play, the Tornados cooled offensively while the Lady Lions did not, as Mars Hill once again shot 50 percent from the floor, connecting on 13-of-26 and 4-of-6 from behind the three-point arc ... BC battled hard for the final seven minutes of play, but could not cut the lead into single digits as Mars Hill answered ever Tornado run ... Brevard had four players in double figures led by Holly Krogman and Kelsey Sill who had 13 points apiece ... Freshman Amanda Whitaker had 11 points, while sophomore Samantha Winn added 10 points while pulling down a team-high six rebounds on the afternoon ... The Tornados will hit the road again on Wednesday, February 6, when they will travel to Hickory, N.C. to take on the Lady Bears' of Lenoir-Rhyne at 6 p.m. ... Then BC returns home on Saturday, February 9, to hosts Lincoln Memorial University at 2 p.m.
CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles put together a memorable, up and down week, splitting a pair of games…The Lady eagles are 11-9, and 5-4 in the SAC after the week's action…C-N fell at home on Wednesday night to Catawba, 59-58 in the closing seconds…Ashley Kyle runner as time expired came up short as she tried to answer Sara Crane's bucket o an inbound with 6.3 seconds remaining…C-N let a 54-50 lead with just over four minutes to play slip away…Sophomore Shari Buford led the Lady Eagles with 13 points and nine boards…Junior Lindsey Eggleston added 10 points and six rebounds in 14 minutes, she had 10 and 5 at the half…Emily Mason also added double-figures with 10 points and four boards…The rebounding effort wasn't typical of this season's team, the Lady Eagles entered the game at +14.1, but finished with only a 39-35 advantage…The Indians led by as many as 11 in the first half, but C-N cut the lead to 31-27 at the half…C-N regained the lead at 37-35 in the second half, on an Ashley Kyle layup, but the Indians answered with a 14-5 run…C-N finished 9-for-22 at the free throw line, the game's key stat…C-N entered shooting over 70 percent as a team…The Lady Eagles backed up the disappointing performance with an impressive win on Saturday at Newberry, 72-58…Eggleston again led the Lady Eagles with 16 points and four rebounds in 21 minutes…She hit her first six shots from the floor…Junior Tykira McDaniel added 12 points and two rebounds…the two were the keys to C-N's 33 bench points…After a poor effort at the line against Catawba, C-N hit 25-of-31 from the line Saturday…Kyle was a big reason, she hit 11-of-12, finishing with 12 points…Junior Ashley Tipton had a big first half, she knocked down her first three attempts from long range, helping C-N jump out to a 22-8 lead…Newberry took the lead in the second half at 45-44, but bounced back with a 17-2 run to put the game out of reach…McDaniel had eight points during the run… The Lady Eagles continue to be a great rebounding team, at +12.7 boards per game…C-N also continues to be very balanced offensively, with four scorers averaging over or right at double figures (Buford 11.5, Mason 10.8, Tipton 10.7, and Angela Volentine 9.9)…Carson-Newman enjoys its mid-week bye on Wednesday, before hosting Mars Hill next Saturday night in Holt Fieldhouse.
CATAWBA - The Catawba women claimed a win at Carson-Newman 59-58 in its lone action of last week on Wednesday ... Sara Crane put the ladies on top, hitting a layup with 6.2 seconds play ... it capped a back-and-forth final two minutes that saw the lead change hands five times ... after taking its first lead midway through the first half, Catawba pushed the margin to as many as 11 points before Carson-Newman eventually rallied and went up 54-50 with just over four minutes left ... the Lady Indians played without two starters, Nisha Long and Hillary Hampton, who were out with injuries ... Brittany Higgins and Cameron Clark, with four three-pointers, each had 12 points to pace Catawba ... Sicilia LoSauro added 11 points ... NeKeithia Howard scored just four points, but they came in the final two minutes to give Catawba one-point leads ... she continues to lead Catawba in scoring (15.2 PPG) and rebounding (7.7 RPG) ... Higgins, who missed five games in early January, is averaging 11 points a game against SAC teams ... Catawba jumps back into action with two games this week, traveling to Wingate and hosting Tusculum ... the ladies lost to each of those teams earlier this season.
LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College women's basketball team (10-9, 2-6) is looking to snap a four-game losing streak after falling to Wingate (82-64) and Tusculum (69-67) on the road last Wednesday and Saturday, respectively … Both the Bulldogs and the Pioneers are tied for first in the South Atlantic Conference standings … Lenoir-Rhyne held a 45-34 advantage over Wingate early in the second half but the Bulldogs used runs of 19-0 and 17-3 to roll to the 18-point win … Anna Atkinson paced Wingate with 17 points while sophomore center Jacquelyn Kremer was Lenoir-Rhyne's top scorer with 11 points … Wingate limited L-R to just 38 percent (13-of-34) shooting for the contest and forced the Bears into 25 turnovers including 17 in the second half … Lenoir-Rhyne pushed Tusculum to the limit but a pair of free throws by Jasmine Parker with five seconds proved to be the game-winners for the Pioneers … Lenoir-Rhyne had a chance to tie but redshirt freshman LaCourtney Rann's (Charlotte, N.C.) jump shot rimmed out as time expired … Behind sophomore guard Amber Holt (Charlotte, N.C.), Lenoir-Rhyne rallied from two nine-point deficits in the second half (42-33 and 45-36) to take the lead but Tusculum connected on six free throws in the final three minutes to win and remain unbeaten at home (9-0) this year … Ashli Oliver's 17 points and four treys propelled the Pioneers to the victory … Holt led the Bears with 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists and Rann added 11 points despite the loss … Lenoir-Rhyne, which begins a three-game home stand, hosts Brevard (Wednesday at 6 p.m.) and Newberry (Saturday at 8 p.m.) this week … Lenoir-Rhyne defeated Brevard earlier this year (January 9) by a 59-47 score before falling to Newberry, 68-64, on January 12 … Lenoir-Rhyne leads the all-time series with both Brevard (3-0) and Newberry (19-9).
LINCOLN MEMORIAL - It was raining threes as junior Karra Harris set a new school record eight three-pointers as LMU defeated North Greenville 77-64 on Wednesday. Harris also set a new record for three-point attempts in a game as well with 15 … As a team the Lady Railsplitters also set new school records for three-pointers made (15) and attempted (35) in the win … Apart from two ties early in the game, LMU (10-8) led the entire game from the start as Harris hit her first three-pointer to give LMU a 3-0 lead with 18:08 to go in the half. Harris led LMU with 26 points … Freshman Stephanie Wagner added in 17 points, including three three-pointers of her own. Megan Davis added in 14 points and Andi Winney scored all of her 11 points in the second half … As a team LMU went 12-12 from the free throw line for the game ... In a game of runs, the Lincoln Memorial University women's basketball team watched an eight point second half lead diminish to a 14 point deficit before falling 75-68 in Saturday night's home conference match-up with visiting Wingate University … As the second half of the game began, the Lady Railsplitters took an eight point lead and seemed to have the momentum until the Bulldogs picked up several transition buckets and forced a number of Lady Railsplitter turnovers. At that point, Wingate whittled away at the LMU lead, eventually opening up a 14 point margin midway through the second half … With the game on the brink of being blown wide open, LMU Head coach Larry Just and his Lady Railsplitters put together a last surge that but the Wingate lead back to one at 69-68 with 1:42 remaining. Several missed shots and a few critical turnovers however allowed Wingate to survive the LMU run and escape the Tex Turner Arena with a narrow seven point win … Saturday's loss drops the Lady Railsplitters to a game above the .500 mark at 10-9 on the year but also puts the LMU women at 2-6 in South Atlantic Conference play, in a tie for seventh place in the league standings … On Wednesday evening, the Lady Railsplitters will be thrown into the fire when they host league-leading Tusculum College (17-3, 7-1) at home in the Tex Turner Arena. The game will be the first of three remaining home games on the 2007-08 schedule and gets underway at 6:00 p.m.
MARS HILL - Mars Hill split their games last week. The Lions are now 11-8 overall and 2-5 in the SAC … In the first game of the week, Jasmine Gunn scored 31 points to lead Tusculum College's women's basketball team to a 95-65 victory over Mars Hill Wednesday night in Pioneer Arena. Gunn (Nashville, TN) added seven assists, six rebounds and four steals. She scored 19 of her 31 points in the first half of play … TC scored 48 points in the paint, 38 points off Lion miscues, 26 points off the break and edged MHC in rebounds, 42-40 … Brittini Young (Ramseur, NC) led MHC with14 points and seven boards. Jessica Blanford (Concord, NC) added 12 points and nine rebounds while Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) added 11 points and five assists. Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) was the only other Lion in double-digits in scoring with 10 … The first 12 minutes of the game were closely played. Kat Spears (Memphis, TN) hit a pair of free throws to give the Pioneers a 25-24 lead with 7:19 left in the first half and TC would not trail again … The Pioneers went on a 16-8 run to close out the first frame and take a nine-point lead (41-32) lead into the locker room at the intermission … The second half belonged to Tusculum as they out scored MHC 54-33 in the final period. The Pioneers went on another 16-8 run to start the final stanza and take a 17-point lead with 14:12 left in the contest after Neptune hit a shot in the lane. MHC would not get any closer down the stretch as TC extended their advantage to 23 points (67-46) five minutes later when Ashli Oliver (Kokomo, IN) hit a layup … A Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) jumper trimmed the Lions' deficit to 18 points with 5:29 left in regulation but that was as close as MHC would get … In the second game of the week, the Brevard Tornados took on rival and SAC foe Mars Hill for the second time in less than a month, this time taking on the Lions at home in Boshamer Gymnasium … Despite a valiant effort, the Tornados could not avenge their earlier season loss to the Lions, falling on Saturday 77-62. Ariel Okunowo (Decatur, GA) recorded her career high 27 points in the win … Although the Tornados never led in the first half, BC never trailed by more than eight points in the first 20 minutes of play as both teams played fairly even basketball. Both teams shot 6-of-6 from the free throw line and over 50 percent from the field with the Tornados shooting 52.4 percent and the Lions shooting right at 50 percent … The Tornados kept it close and remained in striking distance of Mars Hill in the first half, relying on their outside shooting as they knocked down 4-of-8 from the three-point line. The Tornados made a late first half run to cut into the Mars Hill lead making it 36-32 at the half … In the second half of play, the Tornados cooled offensively while the Lions did not as Mars Hill once again shot 50 percent from the floor, connecting on 13-of-26 and 4-of-6 from behind the three-point arc … Mars Hill continued to add to their lead in the second half, pushing it up to double-digits for good at the 7:28 mark on two made free throws by Brittini Young (Ramseur, NC) … BC battled hard for the final seven minutes of play, but could not cut the lead into single digits as Mars Hill answered ever Tornado run … Mars Hill was led by Okunowo's 27 points and six assists. Fellow backcourt mate Brittini Young had 17 points, while forwards Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) and Lindsay Roberts (Murphy, NC) had 12 points apiece. Roberts had a double-double pulling down 10 rebounds to go along with her 12 points … Mars Hill will host SAC rival Newberry College February 6, at 2 p.m. and the play at Carson-Newman College on February 9 at 6 p.m.
NEWBERRY - The Lady Indians went 1- 1 this week…Newberry defeated Brevard in Wednesday contest 64-54…Newberry's bench accounted for all 31 first half points with seven different non-starters recording at least two points in the half…Newberry defense held its opponent under 60 points for the 12th time this season…The Lady Indians forced 26 turnovers on the night including 14 steals and two blocks…Newberry's Ashley Marine scored a team high 14 points…The mark is also a season high for Marine who went 5 for 12 from the field including 4 for 9 from beyond the arc…Frasier added 10 points in the game and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the team…Tosha Goodman and Leanne Watson each had a game high four steals…In the weekend match-up, Newberry fell to Carson-Newman 72-58…Ashlee Wright had a game high 16 points…Tonique Frasier earned her tenth double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds…Newberry hits the road this week as they travel to Mars Hill College on Wednesday night and then to Lenoir-Rhyne on Saturday afternoon…The Lady Indians are 14-6 and 4-4 in SAC play.
TUSCULUM - The Tusculum Pioneers (17-3, 7-1 SAC) recorded a pair of South Atlantic Conference victories at home last week, including wins over Mars Hill (95-65) and Lenoir-Rhyne (69-67)… Tusculum's 17-3 record is the Pioneers best record through 20 games since the 1994-95 squad that posted a 27-7 record while winning the Tennessee-Virginia Athletic Conference and NAIA District 24 titles… Against Mars Hill, freshman Jasmine Gunn scored a career-high 31 points… Gunn added seven assists, six rebounds and four steals as she scored 19 of her 31 points in the first half of play… Sophomore Stephany Neptune recorded her SAC-leading 12th double-double with 14 points and 10 boards… It was her fourth straight double-double and becomes the first TC player since Whitley Campbell in 2001-02 to post four consecutive double-doubles… Junior Shantae Shank rounded out the double-figure scorers for the Pioneers with 13 points… TC scored 48 points in the paint, 38 points off Lion miscues, 26 points off the break and edged MHC in rebounds, 42-40… The first 12 minutes of the game were closely played as sophomore Kat Spears hit a pair of free throws to give the Pioneers a 25-24 lead with 7:19 left in the first half and TC would not trail again… The Pioneers went on a 16-8 run to close out the first frame and take a nine-point lead (41-32) into the locker room at the intermission…. The second half belonged to Tusculum as they out scored MHC 54-33 in the final period… The Pioneers went on another 16-8 run to start the final stanza and take a 17-point lead with 14:12 left in the contest after Neptune hit a shot in the lane. MHC would not get any closer down the stretch as TC extended their advantage to 23 points (67-46) five minutes later when junior Ashli Oliver hit a layup… In Tusculum two-point win over Lenoir-Rhyne, Oliver scored 17 points, including the 1,000th of her career to aid the Tusculum to a thrilling 69-67 victory… With the win, the Pioneers remain undefeated at home this year (9-0) and sweep the season series over the Bears… The game was a battle down to the wire as freshman Jasmine Parker came up with a huge offensive rebound and made a pair of free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining to break a 67-67 tie… Shank posted 13 points and seven rebounds, while Spears and junior Nikki Van Dine each finished with 10 points each… Neptune added eight points and a game-best 10 rebounds, before fouling out with five minutes left in the contest… Neptune has her string of consecutive double-double games come to an end at four in a row… The Pioneers (No. 9 in NCAA II South Atlantic Region) utilized a 13-0 run early in the contest to take a 13-3 lead at the 16:22 mark, capped off by three straight 3-pointers by Oliver, including her 1,000 point… L-R battled back to cut the deficit to 22-21 following a three-pointer… The lead would bounce back and forth until L-R was fouled at the buzzer on a rebound and the Bears made two free throws to give the visitors a 31-30 advantage heading into the locker room… TC came out strong in the second half and used a 9-0 run in the first three minutes, including a three-pointer by Van Dine to give the Pioneers a 39-31 edge… With Tusculum leading 49-41 with 10:34 remaining, L-R went on a 15-6 spurt and took the lead at the 5:37 mark… With the Bears leading 60-58, Tusculum went on a 7-1 spurt to move up 65-61 following two free throws by Spears… L-R fought back and tied the game at 65-65 on a lay-up with 1:11 left on the clock… TC went back on top by two (67-65) on a pair of free throws by Shank with 46 seconds… L-R tied the game once again on two free throws to knot the game at 67-67 with 34 ticks on the scoreboard… Tusculum worked the ball to Shank, whose lay-up was off target, but Parker came down with the huge rebound and was fouled… The Rex, Ga. rookie calmly made both free throws, giving the Pioneers the lead… L-R had won last chance to tie the game, but a 13-foot jumper at the buzzer rimmed out as the Pioneers held on for the victory… Gunn tallied seven points and six assists, before fouling out of the contest with under six minutes left in the game… Tusculum has won its last 11 home games, dating back to last season… Oliver holds the all-time record at Tusculum with 246 career three-point field goals… She is third all-time in SAC history and needs two more treys to tie Presbyterian's Jill Neumann for second place… Neptune continues to lead the SAC in rebounding averaging 10.3 boards per game, including 11.2 rpg in her last five outings… She has posted double-digit rebounds in 13 games this season… Tusculum has blocked a shot in 33 consecutive games… Tusculum's 17-3 record is the best of the six NCAA Division II schools in the State of Tennessee… Tusculum will be on the road for a pair of games this week, beginning with Wednesday's trip to Lincoln Memorial… The Pioneers posted 96-72 home win against LMU last month, for TC's five straight win over the Railsplitters… Tusculum will close out the week with a road trip to Catawba… TC had to rally from a double-digit deficit to defeating the Catawba Indians 85-70… The Pioneers enter this week's action with a 7-1 SAC record and are tied for first place in the conference… TC's seven SAC wins are already tied for the most ever posted by the Pioneers in a season (2003-04, 2005-06, 2006-07)… Tusculum needs one more league win to clinch its first winning SAC record since joining the conference in 1999.
WINGATE - The Wingate University women's basketball team won two games last week to remain tied atop the South Atlantic Conference standings. The Bulldogs topped Lenoir-Rhyne 82-64 Wednesday night in Cuddy Arena. Wingate traveled to Lincoln Memorial Saturday to claim a 75-68 win. The Bulldogs are now 14-6 overall and 7-1 in the league ... On Wednesday night, the Bulldogs outscored the Bears 48-23 in the second half to rally from 11 points down to claim the 18-point win. It was Wingate's 15th consecutive win in Cuddy Arena. Junior guard Anna Atkinson (Marion, N.C.) led the way with 16 points, seven assists and six steals. The L-R contest marked the 11th time this year the Bulldogs have scored at least 80 points; they are 10-1 in those games ... Senior forward/guard Kasey Gillis (Indian Trail, N.C.) added 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals against the Bears. Sophomore center Erica Crumlin (Irmo, S.C.) also had 13 points for the Bulldogs. Senior guard Kate Edwards (Laurinburg, N.C.) hit all three of Wingate's trifectas on the night, scoring 11 points ... The Bears would score the first four points of the second half to take an 11-point lead. Wingate responded with a 19-0 run over the next nine minutes to take a 53-45 lead. Crumlin had six points in the stretch. Freshman guard CC Brooks (Mount Holly, N.C.) capped the run with a pair of free throws ... The Bears cut the lead to six at the 6:27 mark. Wingate answered with a 17-3 run to get the lead to 78-58 with 3:12 remaining. Atkinson had eight points and two assists in the game-changing spurt. The Bulldogs outscored Lenoir-Rhyne 48-23 in the second half ... The Bulldogs shot 46.9 percent from the field in the second half, while going 17-of-19 from the free throw line. Wingate held the Bears to 38.3 percent shooting from the field in the game, while forcing 25 turnovers. The Bulldogs cashed those turnovers in for 31 points. Wingate had 15 steals on the night, led by Atkinson's six. Gillis and Edwards added three each. Wingate has 15 games this season with at least 10 steals ... The Bulldogs won their fifth straight game Saturday night, when they again rallied from another halftime deficit to beat Lincoln Memorial 75-68. The game featured six ties and 11 lead changes. Atkinson again led the way for Wingate with 18 points and four assists ... Brooks added 11 points and five assists. Edwards and junior guard Brittany West (Valdese, N.C.) chipped in with 10 points each, with both players hitting a pair of shots from beyond the arc. As a team, Wingate shot 53.8 percent from three-point range (7-13) Saturday at LMU ... Wingate trailed 49-43 at the 17:32 mark of the second half. The Bulldogs would then go on a 24-4 run over the next 10 minutes to take a 67-53 lead. West scored the first five points, while scoring seven overall during the stretch. Brooks also had seven points in the run, going five-for-five from the free throw line. Atkinson finished the flurry with a three-pointer at the 7:18 mark ... The Bulldogs then withstood a Lincoln Memorial rally that would trim the lead down to one. A Crumlin lay-up with 23 seconds remaining pushed the lead back to three. Wingate would then hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to secure the win ... Atkinson leads the Bulldogs this season with 15.1 points, 8.4 assists and 3.9 steals per game. She leads the conference in assists and steals while ranking fourth in points. Nationally, Atkinson is second in assists per game and assist/turnover ratio. She ranks fourth in steals per game ... Gillis is second on the team with 11.4 points per game. She leads the SAC in free throw percentage, shooting 85.3 percent on the year. Edwards is third on the team with 10.6 points per game. She is fifth in the league with 2.4 three pointers per game, while shooting 37.8 percent from beyond the arc. Edwards is sixth in the league with 1.95 steals per game. Crumlin leads the team in rebounds and blocked shots. Her 2.65 blocks per game leads the conference and ranks seventh in the nation ... The Bulldogs have only one game this week, when they host Catawba College Wednesday night at 6 p.m. Wingate edged the Catawba Indians 76-69 January 9 in Salisbury. Atkinson had 21 points, nine assists and five steals in the contest. Gillis added 16 points, while Crumlin had 10 points, five rebounds and seven blocked shots.