GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Lincoln Memorial University shot 49.2 percent from the field and received 16 points and 11 rebounds from Aisjah Roan in a 76-66 victory over Tusculum College in a South Atlantic Conference Women's basketball game Wednesday night at Pioneer Arena.
Four players scored in double figures for the Railsplitters (7-6, 6-3 SAC), who led by as many as 17 points in the second half and held the Pioneers to 31.6 percent shooting (25-for-79) in the game.
Shynese Whitener scored a career-high 22 points and added seven rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals for the Pioneers (1-12, 1-8 SAC), who also received 13 points and five boards off the bench from Brianna Mitchell while matching LMU with four players in double figures. Kristen McMillion posted her fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 16 rebounds while adding five steals and three blocked shots.
As a team, the Railsplitters shot 29-for-59 from the field and received 37 points from the bench in the victory. Kortnay Cox netted 12 points in 19 minutes, Haley Nelson contributed 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting and Josey Harding notched seven points and five rebounds in reserve roles for Lincoln Memorial.
The Railsplitters used an 8-0 run to jump to a 10-4 lead after three minutes, and built the margin to double figures at 18-18 on a Cox jumper with exactly 11 minutes to play in the half. LMU led by as many as 16 points in the first half and went to the locker room with a 35-23 lead, as Cox led the way with eight points for the Railsplitters. Whitener paced the Pioneers with 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field in the half, but Tusculum finished at 26.5 percent (9-for-34) as a team.
Tusculum cut the Lincoln Memorial lead to 10 points on four occasions early in the second half, only to see the Railsplitters take their biggest lead of the night at 73-56 on a jumper by Samantha Satterlee with 2:52 to go. The Pioneers got to within nine on two free throws by Whitener with 33 seconds left, but LMU ran out the clock to come away with the victory.
McMillion's 16 rebounds were one shy of her career high of 17 boards set at Catawba on Dec. 14, and included 11 rebounds on the offensive glass. She helped Tusculum to a 50-45 advantage on the boards over Lincoln Memorial, with 26 of those rebounds on the offensive end.
Whitener's 22 points surpassed her previous high of 20 points established on Dec. 14 at Catawba, while her six assists were one off her season high. She went 9-for-20 from the field and 4-for-5 from the foul line in 38 minutes of playing time. Blakeley Burleson was the fourth player to reach double figures for the Pioneers, scoring 12 points and pulling six rebounds in 35 minutes of action.
After shooting 41 percent from the field in the first half, the Railsplitters scorched the nets in the second half by going 15-for-25 (60 percent). LMU struggled at the foul line in the game, finishing the contest just 13-for-27 (48.1 percent) at the stripe.
The Pioneers will return to action Saturday at Wingate beginning at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs defeated the Pioneers 89-69 in the teams' first meeting on Nov. 23 in Greeneville.
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