College of Charleston 62, Chattanooga 50

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Senior guard Jade Hughes (Spartanburg, S.C.) notched a game-high 20 points as the College of Charleston (18-7, 12-4) defeated Chattanooga (18-7, 13-3) 62-50 in a Southern Conference women's basketball game at the Carolina First Arena. The CofC victory is the largest in the Division I era over Chattanooga and snaps their 13-game winning streak.

The Cougars never trailed and took control from the very beginning as they jumped out to a 17-6 lead by the 12:07 mark behind three early three-pointers. Senior forward Brooke Kotcella (Anderson, S.C.) capped that run with the last of those and added a jumper less than a minute later to make it 19-9.

Chattanooga closed the gap to 26-20 with 5:23 to play in the half before a three-pointer from freshman forward Caleigh Crowell (Worcester, Mass.) and a pair of free throws from senior center Deidra Jones (Irmo, S.C.) pushed the lead back to double-digits at 31-20. Six points from senior forward Shanara Hollinquest for the Chattanooga and CofC threes by Hughes and senior guard Indya Mudd (New Orleans, La.) then sent the game to the break with the Cougars holding a 37-26 lead.

A 13-5 run to start the second half gave the College of Charleston their largest lead of the game at 50-31 with 12:56 to play but UTC responded with a 7-0 run to close to within 50-38. Back-to-back buckets by senior forward NeShonda McLaurin (McColl, S.C.) over the next 2:30 stretched the lead to 54-38 and the Cougars did not look back as they did not allow the Lady Mocs within more than 11 points the rest of the way. A late run 7-0 run by UTC provided the final margin as the College of Charleston wrapped up the 62-50 victory.

"Chattanooga came in here as the No. 1 team and I just couldn't be happier about our performance today" said head coach Nancy Wilson. "I think the main thing today was that against a very good team, we played consistently the whole game. We didn't really have a big lull. There wasn't any big stretch where we let down or didn't have the momentum going our way or at least matching theirs. I think that was big".

Senior guard Jenaya Wade-Fray was one of two Chattanooga players in to post a double-double as she finished with a team-high 15 points and 10 rebounds while Shanara Hollinquest notched 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. Wade-Fray notched 10 of her points at the foul line as she went a perfect 10-for-10. As a team, the Lady Mocs shot 26.5 percent from the field but finished 18-of-24 on the foul line for a 75 percent clip.

Hughes 20 points led the way for the College of Charleston while junior guard Tonia Gerty (Port Orange, Fla.) posted a solid all-around game with seven points, eight assists and five rebounds. Senior guard Ericka Williams (Blackville, S.C.) finished with nine points and added four rebounds. Kotcella rounded out the Cougars' leading scorers with eight points and chipped in with five rebounds.

The win marked only the second time in the last 20 meetings that the Cougars had defeated Chattanooga, with the one exception being last year's 53-51 victory in the Southern Conference semifinals. It also surpassed the program's previous Division I record of a three-point margin of victory twice before with the last one coming on December 31, 2001, 62-59 in overtime.

The Cougars are back in action when they host Georgia Southern on Senior Day on Saturday, February 13. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m.

NOTES
Having held Chattanooga to a 26.5 shooting percentage, CofC is now 32-0 since joining the Southern Conference in 1998 when they hold opponents below 30 percent ... the victory snaps the Lady Mocs 13-game win streak and is the only the second victory in the past 20 meetings for the College of Charleston.

Wofford 53, Furman 47

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Wofford women's basketball team picked up an important Southern Conference win over nearby rival Furman on Monday by a score of 53-47.

The Terriers opened scoring first with a two-pointer from freshman Rachel Brittenham, but the Paladins claimed the early lead, responding with a three from Kali Holtfreter that jump started a 9-0 run to put Furman up 9-2 at the 16:23 mark.

The Paladins were able to maintain the lead until a layup from senior Kathlyn Varno evened the score at 11 with 13:43 remaining in the first half. Less than 30 seconds later, Furman's Kendra Berry connected on a layup to spark another Paladin run, this time giving Furman a 22-13 advantage before a Mahagony Williams' layup broke the Terriers' scoring drought at the 8:34 mark.

Wofford brought the score within four with 6:22 remaining, but the Paladins answered to maintain control of the game. At the 2:16 mark, a Furman foul put Kelly Dwyer at the line, where she connected on both free throws to cut the Paladin lead to three points. Another Furman foul with 0.4 seconds remaining gave Rachel Brittenham the chance to tie the score, and she made two of three shots to bring the score to 26-27 heading into halftime.

April Moorhouse opened the second half for the Terriers with a made free throw to tie the score at 27, and after two good free throws for Furman, a Varno layup evened the score again at 29. Wofford took the momentum, going on a six point run to take a 35-29 lead with 13:36 remaining in the game. The Paladins were able to bring the score within three points off the strength of two consecutive layups at the 8:45 mark, but the Terriers responded and pushed their advantage to nine points with 5:31 remaining.

Over the next two minutes, Furman would connect on two three-pointers, cutting the Wofford lead to three points, but the Paladins' failed to score again for the remainder of the game. A good two-pointer from Dwyer and a made free throw from Williams sealed the 53-47 win for the Terriers.

Senior Lee Stephens and junior Kelly O'Connor led the Paladins with 10 points each. Senior Susan Troutman grabbed seven boards to pace the team, and senior Kali Holtfreter added eight points.

Kathlyn Varno paced the Terriers with 15 points on 7-8 shooting from the field while also adding four rebounds. Senior Kelly Dwyer led the team with five boards, six steals and three blocks while adding eight points. Sophomore April Moorhouse also contributed eight points in the win.

With the win, Wofford improves to 5-17 overall and 3-11 in Southern Conference play while Furman falls to 6-19 on the season and 4-12 in league play. The Terriers will travel to UNC Greensboro on Friday, February 12 as they take on the Spartans in a 7:00 p.m. game inside Fleming Gymnasium.

Samford 66, Georgia Southern 47

STATESBORO, Ga. - The Samford women's basketball team shot 58.5 percent from the floor, while holding Georgia Southern to 33.3 percent on its way to a 66-47 Southern Conference win Monday evening at GSU's Hanner Fieldhouse.

"I am so proud of this basketball team," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "I thought this was a tremendous team effort, particularly defensively. This was a great road trip. To come off an emotional win at Charleston on Saturday and play the way we did tonight was tremendous."

Samford was led in scoring by Monica Maxwell with 18 points. Paige Anderson scored 13 points, while Alex Crow added 12 points and a team-high six rebounds. Savannah Hill scored 11 points and Megan Wilderotter dished out eight assists, tying a career high.

For Georgia Southern, Jessica Geiger scored seven points and pulled down a team-high six rebounds. J'Lisia Ogburn, Carolyn Whitney, Jamie Navarro and Krista Tate scored seven points apiece for the Lady Eagles.

The game was close through most of the first half, with neither team able to grab more than a three-point lead until, with Samford trailing, 20-18, the Bulldogs went on a 12-2 run to take a 30-22 lead with 1:49 to go in the first half after a layup by Hill.

Georgia Southern scored the next three points to cut the lead to five at 30-25. Samford, however, scored the final five points of the half to take a 35-25 lead into halftime.

Samford pushed its lead out to 16 early in the second half at 43-27 with 17:15 to go after a three-pointer by Maxwell. After Georgia Southern cut the lead to 12 at 43-31, Samford went on a 17-1 run to make the score 60-32 with 9:02 to go after a layup by Crow.

Georgia Southern could get no closer than 19 points the rest of the way as Samford came away with the 66-47 win.

The win was Samford's 10^th in its last 12 games. The Bulldogs improve to 18-7 overall and 12-4 in the SoCon. Georgia Southern drops to 13-11 overall and 8-7 in league play. The Bulldogs remain in a tie for second place in the SoCon with College of Charleston, just one game behind first-place Chattanooga.

Samford will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 13, when the Bulldogs play host to the Davidson Wildcats. The game, which is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center, will be Senior Day for Samford's two seniors, Monica Maxwell and Megan Wilderotter.

Elon 77, Davidson 63 

DAVIDSON, N.C. – The Elon women’s basketball team (10-15, 5-11) connected on 41.4 percent of its shots from the field, as it handed Davidson (12-11, 10-5) a 77-63 loss in Southern Conference action at Belk Arena in Davidson, N.C., on Monday night. It was the first win against the host Wildcats since 2008 and just the fifth all time.
 
“I am extremely proud of the way that this team stayed focused and executed the game plan,” Elon head coach Karen Barefoot said. “The team put together a solid 40 minutes of hard basketball. That is something that we want to continue for the rest of the season.”
 
Elon’s Ali Ford led all scorers with 22 points, converting 4-of-9 baskets from behind the three-point line, and adding four assists. Tiffany Davis contributed 13 points in the win and led the team with eight rebounds. Tiara Gause hit 6-for-7 field goals for 12 points. Kelsey Evans added six boards, including four on the offensive glass, while blocking five shots and dishing three assists.
 
Davidson’s Monica Laune and Sarah Davis each finished with 13 points. Sophia Aleksandravicius was one point shy of a double-double, finishing with nine points and a game-best 10 rebounds.
 
Urysla Cotton accounted for seven points as Elon jumped out to an early 12-5 lead at the start of the game.  Davidson’s Monica Laune connected on three shots from downtown as the Wildcats pulled within one, 17-16, with 11:06 on the clock. A foul behind the arc sent Laune to the charity stripe where she connected on 2-of-3 and tied the game at 20. The Phoenix answered with an 8-0 run that included a pair of buckets by Tiara Gause and put Elon up 28-20 with just over seven minutes remaining in the half. A Tiffany Davis three-pointer with 12 seconds left on the clock capped off a 10-2 run that sent Elon into the locker room holding a 38-26 lead.
 
During the first half, the Phoenix connected on 53.6 percent of its field goal attempts and 60 percent of its shots from downtown. Gause was a perfect 4-of-4, while Ford hit 3-of-4 shots including one from long range. The defense held Davidson without a field goal for nearly six minutes. As a team, the Wildcats shot a paltry 29 percent from the floor and were 3-of-10 from the three-point line.
 
The Phoenix opened up a 50-28 lead, its largest of the game, with just over 16 minutes on the clock following three-point buckets by Davis and Ford. The long range shots kept falling for Ford, as she drained two more that gave Elon a 58-37 lead with 12:47 left to play. The Phoenix scored its next six points from the free throw line that gave it a 64-45 lead with 8:13 left to play. Cotton banked in a three-point shot from the top of the key with 7:52 on the clock that made it a 67-45 game.
 
Davidson’s Davis hit a layup with 6:20 on the clock that sent the Wildcats on a 14-2 run that spanned nearly five minutes and put them within 10, 69-59. They would not come any closer, as Elon sank 6-of-8 shots from the free throw line to seal the 77-63 win.
 
Elon will host Western Carolina on Saturday at 2 p.m., for its annual WBCA Pink Zone game. Fans are encouraged to wear pink as the Phoenix joins schools from around the country to raise breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond.

Appalachian State 73, Western Carolina 59

BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University women’s basketball made11 free throws down the stretch, to ice the game Monday evening, and pull out a 73-59 win over Southern Conference rival Western Carolina in the Holmes Center. The victory is the Mountaineers’ seventh-straight, and improves ASU to 14-9 overall and 10-4 in conference action, while the Lady Catamounts drop to 4-20 on the season and 3-12 in the conference.

After taking a narrow four-point advantage heading into intermission, the Apps used a 15-4 run to open the second-half to take a 54-39 lead with a little under 13 minutes to play. Sam Ramirez (Fayetteville, N.C./Southview) and Ashlen Dewart (Spartanburg, S.C./Dorman) continued their offensive production during the run, as the duo combined for 11 points over the five-minute span.

Dewart went 8-12 from the field, pouring in 25 points, while grabbing six rebounds and Ramirez tied a career-high with 23 points, along with dishing out five assists and recording three steals.

Despite the double-digit Mountaineer lead, Western Carolina tried to rally a comeback, scoring seven unanswered. Led by a Jessica Jackson three-pointer, WCU was able to pull back within seven points, the narrowest of margins since the start of the second-half. However, made free throws over the course of the final three minutes kept ASU on top and earned Appalachian the 14-point victory.

Shooting an average of 60 percent from the charity stripe heading into Monday’s contest, the Apps posted its best outing of the season at the free throw line, going 16-17, good enough for an impressive 94 percent. With four free throws against Western Carolina, Ramirez has now connected on 19-consecutive over the past four games.

It was a back and forth affair of sorts to start the game but an early 11-0 streak, put ASU out in front 19-10 just seven minutes into action. The nine point cushion was not good enough, as Western Carolina came storming back, outscoring Appalachian 21-6 to jump back in front by six points with a little under six minutes to play until the break.

Kristen Feemster scored WCU’s first eight points during the run, while finishing the game as Western Carolina’s leading scorer with 17.

Ramirez, Kelsey Sharkey (Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Ursula) and Chakeitha Weldon (Atlanta, Ga./Kansas), were able to get the Mountaineers going on the offensive front, and earn the Black and Gold the 39-35 lead at halftime.

Weldon also ended the contest in double-figures, scoring 13 points along with totaling four assists.

Strong second period play enabled a balanced ASU attack to complete the season-sweep of the Lady Catamounts for the first time since the 2004-05 campaign and grab its third win in the month of February.

Putting its winning streak and spotless SoCon road record on the line, the Mountaineers now head to Chattanooga, Tenn. to take on league-leader Chattanooga, Saturday February 13. The contest against the Lady Mocs is set to begin at 5 p.m., in UTC’s McKenzie Arena.

Notes: The 14 wins for ASU are the most in the season since the 2005-06 campaign (went 15-13 overall) ... the ten conference wins are the most since the 2005-06 season (11-7 in SoCon, fourth in conference) ... the seven-straight wins is the longest winning streak since the 1995-96 season ... the season sweep of the Lady Catamounts is ASU’s first since the 2004-05 season ... the season sweep is the Apps’ third of a conference opponent this season (Western Carolina, Elon and Davidson) ... the five home wins match the total number of home victories from a season ago ... Darcie Vincent coached teams are an even 2-2 against Western Carolina ... Darcie Vincent coached teams have now earned three wins over teams that advanced to the 2008-09 postseason (WCU- twice and ETSU) ... the 3-0 start to the month of February is the Mountaineers’ best start to the month since the 2001-02 season.