Posted: Mar 08, 2009
HICKORY, N.C. --- The third-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne University
women's basketball team (26-4) defeated top-seeded Tusculum College
(25-5) 66-57 in the championship game of the Food Lion South
Atlantic Conference Tournament on Sunday afternoon to capture the
program's second SAC Tournament title.Lenior-Rhyne won the battle on the glass by a 53-38 margin, and held the Pioneers to under 30% from the floor for the first time this season. The Bears connected on 37.7% of their attempts from the field, including 12-of-28 (42.9%) in the second half to overcome a 28-27 halftime deficit and defeat the No. 13 Pioneers for the second time this season.
Kat Spears and All-SAC First Team selection Stephany Neptune each turned in a double-double for the Pioneers, as Spears connected on 7-of-15 attempts from the floor for 16 points while pulling down 14 rebounds. Neptune scored 14 points and grabbed 10 boards to extend her streak of five or more rebounds to 65 straight games. Jasmine Gunn paced the Pioneers with 17 points, while Nikki Van Dine dished out a team-high five assists.
Lenoir-Rhyne junior Denise Moore registered a double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds, while All-SAC First Team honoree Amber Holt scored a game-high 19 points. Whitley Culler turned in a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Jami Safrit dished out a team-best five assists.
The game was a defensive battle as the two squads combined to shoot 26.9% from the floor (17-of-63) in the first half, and 30.8% overall on the afternoon. Lenoir-Rhyne jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the first minute and a half, before Van Dine hit a three-pointer to tie the score and launch the Pioneers on a 7-2 run.
After L-R's LaCourtney Rann knocked down a three to put the Bears up 8-7, Tusculum launched a 7-0 run to take its largest lead of the game at 14-8 with 14:01 remaining in the first half. The lead would change hands twice in the final 10 minutes of the half, as L-R closed the period with a 4-0 spurt to cut the advantage to 28-27 heading into the intermission.
Lenoir-Rhyne dictated the tempo for much of the second half, opening the period with a 16-8 run to take a 43-36 lead on a Holt three-pointer with 13:48 left in the game. Tusculum would close the gap to 45-42 over the next few minutes, and remain within six points of the Bears until the final minute of the game, when L-R connected on 10-of-12 attempts at the line to seal the nine-point win.
Tusculum now awaits tonight's NCAA Tournament selection show to learn its tournament fate. Fans can tune in to the selection show on ncaa.com tonight at 9 p.m.
- TC
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