College of Charleston 63, UNCG 43

CHARLESTON, S.C. – In front of a crowd of 2,347, largely made up of kids, the College of Charleston women’s basketball team raced to a 63-43 win Monday at TD Arena.

Junior Alyssa Frye led three CofC players in double-figures with 15 points and both senior Latisha Harris and junior Afreyea Tolbert recorded double-doubles for the Cougars. Harris had 14 points and 13 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season and Tolbert added 14 points and 12 rebounds in her first start of the season.

Harris got the Cougars (9-12, 5-7) started with six of their first 10 points to build an early 10-5 lead. The Spartans (4-17, 1-11) counted with a 6-0 run as they took an 11-10 lead on a three-pointer from Jessica Collins.

The Cougars, who had nine players score in the game, came right back on a 10-0 run of their own with contributions from four different players, which catapulted them to a 29-20 halftime lead.

In the second half the Cougars lead stayed around 10 points until Frye made a three-pointer to give the Cougars a 41-29 lead. Sophomore Mikaela Hopkins followed with an offensive rebound and put back and another layup to give the Cougars a 16 point lead at 45-29 with 11:39 remaining in the game.

The Spartans made one last push, but could only trim the Cougars lead to 11 at 50-39 with 6:16 left in the game. From that point the Cougars closed the game on a 13-4 run to earn the 63-43 victory.

The Cougars held a 28-16 advantage on the Spartans in points in the paint and converted 17-of-23 free throws (73.9 percent) in the victory. The Cougars also had 21 offensive rebounds, which they converted into 12 second chance points. 

Before the game the College of Charleston had several representatives from the CofC School of Science and Mathematics do demonstrations for the kids. Other groups that were involved included: South Carolina Aquarium, MUSC, NASA and the following College departments: Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, Grice Marine Laboratory, Center for Partnerships and Education, Computer Science, Geology, NASA, Physics and Astronomy, and the School of Education Health and Human Performance.

Chattanooga 63, Wofford 44

SPARTANBURG, S.C. --- University of Tennessee at Chattanooga junior Alex Black (Memphis, Tenn.) scored a team-high 14 points to lead the Lady Mocs to a 63-44 win over Wofford Monday night at the Benjamin Johnson Arena in Southern Conference women’s basketball action.

Chattanooga, 18-3 overall and 11-1 in league play, sits alone in first place in the SoCon standings as Davidson (10-1) had the night off. Wofford falls to 6-14 on the year and 1-11 in conference action.

Wofford reeled off eight straight points over the first 3:35 of the game with six points from Daniella Motley. Chattanooga responded with a 10-0 run over the next 5:19 to started with a short jumper in the lane by junior Faith Dupree (Knoxville, Tenn.) and capped off with a layup from sophomore Ka’Vonne Towns (Lilburn, Ga.).

The Terriers got back out front by as much as five points and the Lady Mocs closed out the first half with a 9-3 run to take a slim 24-23 lead into halftime.

Black started the second half with the second of her three 3-pointers to spark a 13-3 run and the Lady Mocs’ lead climbed to 37-26 with 15:46 to play. The Terriers would get only as close as six points the remainder of the game as Chattanooga continued to build its lead and get out front by as much as 23 points, 60-37, with 2:47 to play.

Wofford cut the lead to 41-35 with 10:17 to play and would not score again over the next 6:25 while Chattanooga put up 16 points for a 57-35 lead with 5:18 to play.

Black was 5-of-7 from the field and 3-of-3 from the 3-point line while playing just 15 minutes. Junior Ashlen Dewart (Spartanburg, S.C.), playing in her hometown, scored nine points and had three rebounds. Junior Taylor Hall (New Tazewell, Tenn.), senior Kylie Lambert (Etowah, Tenn.) and junior Faith Dupree (Knoxville, Tenn.) each chipped in six points while Hall grabbed eight rebounds and Lambert had five. Freshman Tatianna Jackson (Atlanta, Ga.) had seven points, two assists and three steals.

Wofford outrebounded Chattanooga 44-34 with 16 offensive boards to UTC’s 14. Chattanooga forced 23 Terrier turnovers and scored 27 points off the miscues and the Lady Mocs’ bench outscored Wofford’s 26-9.

The Terriers were led by Motley’s game-high 16 points and eight rebounds. Rachel Brittenham had nine points and eight rebounds and three steals. Brittenham broke the Wofford career assists record in the first half, previously held by Libby Corry at 449. Her record-breaking assist came on a pass to Jordan Frazier at 9:09 to play in the first half that led to a three point play.

Elon 60, Western Carolina 51

ELON, N.C. – Ali Ford hit her 316th career three pointer to become the Southern Conference’s all-time three-point leader tonight, Feb. 4, as the Elon women’s basketball team (12-9, 9-3) defeated Western Carolina (6-15, 4-8), 60-51, in Alumni Gym in the annual Play 4Kay game.

Another record was matched for the Phoenix as Kelsey Evans finished with seven blocks to tie Elon’s single-game record and set a new career high.

Elon finished 22-of-60 from the field to shoot 36 percent and scored 26 points in the paint, while WCU finished with a 35 percent shooting mark. On defense, the Phoenix blocked 10 shots, while scoring 22 points off 20 Catamount turnovers.

Ford led all players with 16 points, connecting on 6-of-12 from the field. The Morganton, N.C., native also finished with four assists. Kelsey Harris recorded 13 points, while Jessica Farmer made it three players in double figures with a career-high 11 points.

All 11 players that dressed in the maroon and gold tonight saw significant playing time as 10 Phoenix stayed in the game for 13 minutes or more.

With the score tied at 10 in the first half, the Phoenix put together an 11-point run with five points by Farmer and six by Ford to lead 21-10 with 9:40 to play. The Catamounts pulled within four, 21-17, with just under seven minutes remaining before Elon closed out the first frame on an 11-4 run to hold an 32-21 edge at the break.

Elon opened the second half on an 11-2 run to extend its lead to 20, 43-23, after a layup by Ford at the 16:39 mark. The largest advantage for the maroon and gold came at 11:14 when Autumn Carter finished a three-point play opportunity at the charity stripe to put the Phoenix up by 24, 53-29. The Catamounts would not surrender and fought to the end, cutting the Elon lead to nine by the end of the game. However, it was too little too late for WCU as the Phoenix won its seventh straight game at home.

Furman 59, Samford 55

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Sarah Durdaller scored 13 points — all in the second half — and claimed a career high 13 rebounds to power Furman past Samford, 59-55, in Southern Conference women’s basketball play Monday evening at Timmons Arena.

Durdaller, a sophomore forward who missed Furman’s first clash against Samford, a 65-33 blowout loss in Birmingham, due to a broken foot, scored seven points in an 11-2 second half run that rallied the Paladins from a four-point deficit to a 48-42 advantage with nine and half minutes to go — a lead Furman would not relinquish the rest of the way.

The win halted a six-game series losing skid for Furman (9-12, 5-7 SoCon) and marked the Paladins’ first win in Greenville against Samford (11-10, 8-4 SoCon).

Durdaller’s double-double was her second in the last three games, which began with a 14-point, 11-rebound performance in an 80-71 win at College of Charleston.

Teshia Griswold also tallied 13 points for Furman, which got 12 points from Brittany Hodges.  Senior guard Kaitlin Murphy, who entered the contest with 996 points, contributed seven points to became the 19th player in program history to score 1,000 points.

The Paladins shot just 35.2 percent from the field but continued their recent torrid work at the free throw line, converting 18-of-20 attempts (90.0 percent).  Furman also notched a 38-33 rebounding advantage in the contest and committed a season low nine turnovers, including just two in the second half.

Samford got a game high 20 points from Jazmine Martin, who kept the Bulldogs within striking distance down the stretch with a trio of 3-pointers, and Hannah Dawson added 12 points.

Furman led 33-30 at intermission and opened the second half with a pair of Durdaller free throws to take a 35-30 advantage before Samford fashioned a 9-0 run to grab a 39-35 lead on Dawson’s layup at the 14:34 mark.

A Martin jump shot at the 14:36 juncture put Samford up 41-37 before Furman responded with the game changing 11-0 spurt.  A Janice Roberts assist that led to a Patrice Butler layup broke a 41-41 tie, and Durdaller later followed with a three-point play for a 46-42 advantage with 10:45 to go.  Durdaller finished off run a little over a minute later with two free throws for a 48-42 lead.

Martin did her best to keep Samford close the rest of the way, draining three, 3-pointers for the Bulldogs, who cut the Furman lead to 57-55 on a Kendall Schwantz jumper in the lane with 12 seconds to go.  The Paladins, however, put the game away with a pair of Murphy free throws with nine seconds remaining.

Janice Roberts’ five assists marked a career high.

Appalachian State 67, Georgia Southern 54

STATESBORO, Ga. - Anna Freeman recorded a game-high 18 points, while Kelsey Sharkey grabbed a season-high 11 boards and seven steals to lead Appalachian State University women's basketball to a 67-54 win against Southern Conference foe Georgia Southern on Monday at Hanner Fieldhouse.

After Mimi Dubose scored the first basket, the Mountaineers (14-5, 8-3 SoCon) took the lead and powered forward as they handed the Eagles (4-17, 3-9 SoCon) a second loss this season.

Jessica Barrios made her second start of the season for App State, putting the Apps on the board with a jumper (2-2) to jumpstart the Mountaineers victory. A. Freeman captured 12 points, along with two blocks and two steals. Appalachian held GSU to 34.6 percent (9-for-26) in the first half on its way to a comfortable 35-23 halftime lead.

The Black & Gold continued the momentum through the second half as they knocked down 32 points in 45.8 percent shooting (11-of-24). The Eagles threatened briefly climbing back, as they cut the Mountaineer lead to just eight after an Anna Clare Knight layup and pair of free-throws from Meredyth Frye, but the Apps responded immediately. A. Freeman laid in a basket for two, and expanded the lead from there by as much as 22. C. Freeman led in second-half scoring with nine points, while Sharkey pulled down eight rebounds in the period.

Sharkey recorded a game high 11 boards and seven steals, while dishing out two assists, in a powerful performance against GSU. A. Freeman led all players in scoring with 18 points, and put up two blocks and four steals for the Mountaineers. C. Freeman finished with 15 points and two assists for the night, while shooting 7-7 at the charity stripe. Maryah Sydnor rounded out the App's double-digit scorers with 13 points against the Eagles. 

Alexis Sams paced Georgia Southern with 14 points. Meredyth Frye grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and four assists.

Appalachian shot 47.4 percent (27-of-57) on the night, while GSU connected on just 33.9 percent (20-of-59) of its shots.