Chattanooga 66, St. Peter's College 50
JERSEY CITY, N.J. - The Chattanooga women's basketball team defeated host St. Peter's College 66-50 Wednesday night to claim the SPC Holiday Classic title.
Chattanooga improves to 8-6 overall and will return home to begin the Southern Conference season in earnest hosting the College of Charleston Saturday night at the Roundhouse.
Free throws were again the story of the night for Chattanooga who went 23-for-27 (85.2 percent) from the charity stripe. The Lady Mocs iced the victory down the stretch on eight straight free throws from sophomore Tenisha Townsend (Antioch, Tenn.) who finished the game with a career-high 13 points.
Following an exciting double-overtime victory against Richmond on Tuesday, the Lady Mocs started the game with a 4-2 lead that evaporated briefly to a 10-6 deficit fueled by an 8-2 run by the Peahens. Chattanooga would push a 10-3 run to retake a lead it would not relinquish the remainder of the game.
Senior Shanara Hollinquest (Sylacauga, Ala.) started the game out strong making all six of Chattanooga's first points and closing out the first half with 11 points. Freshman Erin Helton (Cookeville, Tenn.) had seven points at the break while Townsend and freshman Kayla Christopher (Oliver Springs, Tenn.) each chipped in five in the first half to help the Lady Mocs to a 33-29 halftime lead.
In the second half, Chattanooga went cold from beyond the arc missing all nine attempts and shooting just 34.6 percent (9-of-26) from the field. Senior Jenaya Wade-Fray (Madison, Ala.) stepped up to lead the Lady Mocs' second half scoring with 10 of her 11 points. Hollinquest added nine to her total for a game-high of 20 points making 5-of-7 from the free throw line in the period.
The Peahens would get as close as eight points twice in the second half. Morris missed a layup that would have cut the lead to six. Morris had 11 points for St. Peter's. Jynae Judson led the Peahens with 15 points and Charlene Riddick had nine in the loss.
Hollinquest was named the tournament MVP with 45 points and 19 rebounds over the two-day tournament. She had four assists, one blocked shot, two steals and was 23-of-27 from the free throw line. She was joined on the all-tournament team by Wade-Fray who had 26 points, 10 rebounds, five assist and was 4-for-5 from the charity stripe.
Erin Helton averaged 11.5 points and seven rebounds over the two days while Townsend combined for 19 points including a 9-of-10 performance from the free throw line.
The Lady Mocs will host the College of Charleston Saturday evening at the McKenzie Arena. Larry Ward, the "Voice of the Lady Mocs", will have all the action line on ESPN 105.1 The Zone. Live stats, streaming audio and video will be available online at the official website of UTC athletics, GoMocs.com.
Georgia Southern 60, Florida Atlantic 43
STATESBORO, GA - The Georgia Southern women's basketball team closed out 2009 with a 60-43 victory over Florida Atlantic Wednesday night (December 30). The Lady Eagles broke a three-game win streak the Owls held entering the game, improving to 7-5 on the season. FAU dropped to an even 6-6.
Coming back from the break, Georgia Southern used a 15-4 run over the first 6:10 minutes of the second stanza to open a double digit lead, 34-24, over the Owls. A senior effort pushed the Eagles' lead out to 41-26 with 9:05 to play in the game. Jamie Navarro (Naples, Fla.) nailed a three-pointer from the left side, giving the Lady Eagles a comfortable 52-33 lead with 4:39 on the clock. Georgia Southern continued to hold its lead to secure a 60-43 win in its last non-conference game of the season and finish the month of December with a 6-1 record.
After a trifling first half shooting 32 percent, GS rebounded in the second half, shooting 60 percent from the floor (15-25). Florida Atlantic was kept to 32 percent shooting for the game after a 29 percent opening frame.
Three Lady Eagles scored in double digits led by Carolyn Whitney (Duluth, Ga.) with 16 points. Navarro added her 12, nine coming in the second half, as J'Lisia Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) closed out the game with 10 points.
Despite pulling down 23 defensive rebounds, Georgia Southern was outrebounded by the Owls, 32-34. FAU recorded 17 offensive boards to GS's nine. The Owls converted no treys on 12 attempts; the Lady Eagles shot 42 percent (5-12) from three-point land led by Whitney's two.
Georgia Southern took 19 trips to the free throw line, converting 13 for a 68 percent clip. Scoring 22 points in the paint, Georgia Southern also picked up 14 points off the bench.
"Tonight, we challenged the kids to be more aggressive and not back down against their opponent because that is what people are going to throw at us from now on. And I think they did a good job of that tonight," said head coach Rusty Cram. "We have to continue to get more physical and aggressive as the season goes along.
"I thought Briana Scott did a great job off the bench in the post. It was probably the best performance by her for the year."
It was an offensive struggle for both teams in the first half. Georgia Southern managed to jump out to a 7-0 lead with buckets from Navarro, Ogburn and Whitney, but Florida Atlantic returned with four unanswered. A scoreless seven minutes from the field by GS allowed the Owls to inch their way back, bringing the score to 8-6 by the third media timeout. FAU knotted the score at 8-all before taking a three-point lead following back-to-back buckets from Carla Stubbs. Whitney ended a 10:12 minute field goal drought for the Lady Eagles, but FAU extended its advantage to four points before Samantha Williams (Kingsport, Tenn.) made it a one point game, 15-16, with a trey at the 3:57 marker. Converting a one-and-one for two points, Whitney returned the lead to the Lady Eagles before a last second jumper from Stubbs dropped in to give the Owls a one-point halftime advantage, 19-20.
Georgia Southern opens the New Year traveling to Samford, January 2. Game time in Birmingham, Alabama is slated for 3:00 p.m. (EST).
Appalachian State 74, George Mason 54
BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University women's basketball outscored George Mason by 14 points in second half action, and cruised past the Patriots, picking up a 74-54 win Wednesday evening at the Holmes Center. With the victory, ASU snaps a two-game losing streak and improves to 5-6 on the season and 2-3 on its home floor, while GMU drops to 7-4 overall.
After the Black and Gold headed into the break up by six points, the Patriots came out strong to open the second period, as a jumper by Brittany Eley cut the Apps lead to just four points. Appalachian however would answer, going on a 12-2 streak that proved to be the difference-maker in the game.
Catherine Williams (Chattanooga, Tenn./Howard), Ashlen Dewart (Spartanburg, S.C./Dorman) and Courtney Freeman (Carlton, Ga./Madison County) all contributed to the run, making the score 50-36 with just under 13 minutes to play in the game.
Dewart finished the game in double-figures for the ninth-straight time, pouring in a team-high 13 points to go along with two rebounds. Courtney Freeman was impressive as well, as she closed out the game with nine boards and nine points.
George Mason would never come closer than 13 points, as the Mountaineers got offensive production from all over, with Chakeitha Weldon (Atlanta, Ga./Kansas) and Anna Freeman (Thomasville, N.C./East Davidson) providing sparks for the Apps.
Anna Freeman posted her third double-double of her young career, totaling a game-high 10 boards and 10 points.
A made free throw shot by Sade' Means with 44 seconds to play gave ASU its largest advantage of the contest, leading by 23 points, but a final three-pointer by Janaa Pickard earned Appalachian the 20 point win to end the contest.
The Mountaineers never trailed, after jumping out to a commanding 21-10 advantage at the start. Two treys by Kesley Sharkey (Cincinatti, Ohio/Saint Ursula) and Dewart helped give ASU the cushy 12 point lead.
George Mason would not go away quietly, storming back, as Eley led GMU's 10-2 run to cut the Patriots deficit to just seven points, making the score 31-24 with 6:55 to go before the half.
ASU was able to stave off the pesky Patriot squad and notch a six point advantage heading into intermission.
A strong second half, led by 42 percent field goal shooting and an 83 percent mark from the charity stripe pushed Appalachian to the stout 20 point win.
The victory marked the Appalachian State women's basketball program's 50th win in the Holmes Center since the building opened back in the 2000-2001 season. It also gave Appalachian its final win of 2009, making it the first time ASU closed out a year with a win since December 30, 2005 when the Apps defeated Nicholls State.
ASU continues with the 2009-10 campaign, as the Black and Gold jump back into league play, welcoming Elon to the Holmes Center Saturday January 2. Tip off against the Phoenix is slated for 3 p.m.
No. 12 Florida State 80, Western Carolina 47
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Western Carolina women's basketball fell to No. 11 Florida State 80-47 Wednesday at the Tucker Center. The Catamounts drop to 2-10 on the season while the Seminoles improve to 12-2.
The Catamounts hit just five field goals in the first 10 plus minutes of the second half, with four of the five coming from junior Emily Clarke. Senior Kristen Feemster hit an open lay-up for the fifth field goal.
Clarke and Kendra Carroll each scored in double figures in the game. Clarke finished the game with 19 points while Carroll added 10. Each have now led the team in scoring five times this season.
Western Carolina had two early, and short-lived, leads in the first half against Florida State. Clarke's jumper with 17:56 on the clock gave the Catamounts a 3-2 advantage and then Carroll's bucket with 17:14 left afforded WCU with a 5-4 advantage.
Tied at seven, Florida State's Courtney Ward nailed a three-pointer to give the Seminoles the lead for good. Western Carolina went six minutes, 7:26 to 1:35, without a field goal - hitting 4-of-6 free throws in that span. The Catamount scoring drought was halted with a three-pointer by Jessica Jackson (1:35), the only trey hit by WCU in the first half.
The Catamounts shot just 31.4 percent from the field and connected on 16 field goals. In contrast, FSU shot 48.2 percent from the field and hit 27 field goals. The Seminoles also connected on nine three-pointers, while the Catamounts just three treys - two were made by Clarke.
Western Carolina returns home from its grueling four-game road swing to begin a three-game home stand. The Catamounts host Southern Conference foe Furman Saturday. Tip time is set for 2 p.m. in the Ramsey Center.