Livingstone was on fire to begin the contest, hitting 12 of its first 16 shots to go on top 25-12 on a jumper by Jonta’ Moss (Augusta, GA) at the 9:55 mark.  Catawba began to close the gap from there closing within 27-23 after consecutive layups by Ingrid Easter (Cana, VA) and Hillary Hampton (Salisbury, NC). 

 

A basket by Kimone Johns (Bronx, NY) put Livingstone up 29-23, but Hampton canned a three-pointer and Andrell Baxter (Evergreen, AL) followed with two baskets to give Catawba its first lead at 30-29 with 2:24 to go in the half.  Catawba would never trail after that and took a 35-33 lead to the break. 

 

Catawba led 45-43 with 15:42 remaining then put together a 13-1 run over a three minute span to begin to pull away.  The Lady Blue Bears pulled within 60-50 with 11 minutes to play, but a 20-5 run by the Catawba Indians put the game away.

 

After its torrid start, Livingstone cooled off to hit just 42% for the game (25-of-60), while Catawba canned 46%.  Livingstone held a 44-39 edge on the boards, but committed 30 turnovers to just 17 for Catawba. 

 

Hampton led Catawba with 15 points, while Baxter netted a career-best 14 points.  Brittany Higgins  (Takoma Park, MD) added 12 points, while Corin Muldrow (Jacksonville, NC) had 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.  LaTanya Walker (Charlotte, NC) had 12 points and six rebounds for Livingstone, while Love Brown (Norfolk, VA) had 10 points and three blocks.

 

In the opener, Carson-Newman freshman Casha Foster (Crossville, TN) had 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds to lead the Lady Eagles.  Carson-Newman never trailed in the contest and led 36-28 at halftime.  Francis Marion scored the first five points of the second half to pull within 36-33 on a jumper by Brittany Young (Moncks Corner, SC) with 18:09 to play.  Carson-Newman answered with a 13-0 run to put the game away.

 

Lady Eagle Shari Buford (Hampton, GA) had five points during the 13-0 flurry.  Buford’s single free throw put Carson-Newman up 49-33 with 11:07 to go.  The Patriots went almost 10 minutes without a field goal before Shonelle Downer (Columbia, SC) hit an inside hoop at the 8:36 mark to make the score 52-39.

 

Francis Marion would get no closer than 10 points down the stretch. The Patriots hit only 29.0 percent (18-of-62) of their field goals, converting only 27.6 percent in the second half (eight-of-29). Both teams made 26 turnovers each.  Carson-Newman did not fare much better from the floor, hitting 35.6 percent (26-of-73) of its field goal attempts. The Eagles outrebounded the Patriots 56-42, led by eight boards each by Ashley Tipton (Knoxville, TN) and Emily Mason (Rogersville, AL).

 

Mason supported Foster’s efforts with 13 points and a team-high four steals. Mason also notched three assists. Lady Eagle Stefanie Holbrook (Oak Ridge, TN) had 10 points off the bench, helping the Carson-Newman reserves outscore their Francis Marion counterparts 26-11. Holbrook hit a game-high three three-point field goals.

 

Young led Francis Marion with 13 points and three assists. She hit only four-of-14 field goals. Patriot Renee Guilliams (Troutville, VA) contributed 11 points and seven rebounds. Guilliams managed only three-of-12 shooting from the field. Downer led the Patriots with eight rebounds. Both Downer and Shavone Mack (Cross, SC) blocked six shots each for FMU.