JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. --- Campbell Penland scored a game-high 25 points as Carson-Newman University defeated Tusculum University 93-73 in South Atlantic Conference women's basketball Wednesday evening at Holt Fieldhouse.
Tori Rutherford added 19 points and six assists for the Eagles (4-0, 2-0 SAC), ranked ninth in Division II in the WBCA coaches poll and seventh in the D2CSC media rankings this week.
Jalyn Spurlin reached the 20-point mark for the second straight game for the Pioneers (2-3, 0-1 SAC), scoring a team-high 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting off the bench. Tusculum shot 41.4 percent (24-for-58) from the field as a team but had 23 turnovers which led to 27 Carson-Newman points.
Penland went 5-for-10 from three-point range as the Eagles shot 14-for-31 (45.2 percent) from beyond the arc in the game. Rutherford and Jennifer Sullivan each hit three threes, with Sullivan scoring 11 points. Overall, Carson-Newman shot 42.1 percent (32-for-76) from the field and had a 45-37 rebound advantage over Tusculum, including 16 offensive boards.
Danyell Booker also reached double figures for the Pioneers, collecting 13 points along with three steals in 22 minutes off the bench. Tusculum, which entered the game leading the SAC with 33.8 points per game from reserves, boosted that average with 41 points off the bench on Wednesday.
Ni'Kiah Chesterfield, the reigning SAC and Tennessee Sports Writers Association Player of the Week, picked up two fouls in the first five minutes and finished with just seven points and three rebounds in 18 minutes of playing time for the Pioneers.
The teams were tied 5-5 after a three-pointer from Tusculum's Monique Shim three minutes into the game, and again at 9-9 after a basket by Spurlin with 4:41 left in the opening quarter. The Eagles would go on a 7-0 run to take a 16-9 lead on a layup by Makayla Alvey with 2:01 left in the quarter and build a 21-14 lead following a three-pointer from Mattie Nuckolls with 54 seconds to play.
The Pioneers trailed 24-19 following a three-pointer from Jenna Kallenberg with 8:18 left in the first half, only to see the Eagles go on an 11-0 surge that included two three-pointers from Penland. Carson-Newman led 35-19 with 3:59 to play in the half and by as many as 17 before Spurlin hit a jumper just before halftime to cut the margin to 46-31 at intermission.
Spurlin was 5-for-7 from the field and 2-for-4 at the line to lead the Pioneers with 12 points in the first half, but Tusculum turned the ball over 16 times and shot 42.9 percent (12-for-28) from the field. Penland paced the Eagles with 11 points in the half as Carson-Newman shot 8-for-18 from long range and 37.2 percent overall (16-for-43) from the floor as a team.
Carson-Newman's lead swelled briefly to 19 at 57-38 on a three-pointer by Sullivan with 7:06 left in the third quarter, but Tusculum chipped away and cut the led to 63-55 on a layup by Angela Gomez off a steal from Booker with under a minute left in the quarter. The Eagles would score on three free throws in the closing seconds to go up 66-55 entering the final quarter.
A layup by Spurlin left the Pioneers trailing 72-61 with 8:13 remaining, but another three-pointer from Penland and a three-point play from Rutherford pushed the Eagles on top 78-71 with 7:41 to go. Carson-Newman took its largest lead at 93-68 on a layup by Rutherford with 1:50 left before a three-pointer from Kallenberg and a basket by Abbi Douglas closed the scoring for the Pioneers.
Shim was 3-for-7 from three-point range for the Pioneers and scored nine points, while Kallenberg had six points and led the team with a season-high six rebounds. Gomez came off the bench to score six points and dish out six assists in 15 minutes.
Lindsey Taylor scored seven points and led the Eagles with a game-high 14 rebounds along with six assists. Madelyn Ladd reached double figures off the bench for Carson-Newman with 10 points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.
Tusculum will travel to face Wingate on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m. from Cuddy Arena. The Bulldogs fell to 1-3 overall with a 63-57 loss at Coker in their SAC opener on Wednesday.
