DeLand, Fla. ? Senior point guard Sharnesha Smith (Kingsland, Ga.) scored 16 of her season-high 20 points in the second half and handed out eight assists to lead the Stetson women's basketball team (2-4, 1-0 Atlantic Sun) to a 77-68 victory over visiting Florida Gulf Coast (4-2, 0-1 A-Sun) in the conference opener for both schools Thursday evening at the Edmunds Center. Smith shot 60 percent from the field and was a perfect six for six from the foul line. The Hatters used a 24-4 run over a 10-minute stretch of the second half to erase a five-point Eagle lead and go onto victory.
Down 36-34 at halftime, the Hatters found themselves behind by as many as six points early in the second half before chipping away. A quick 6-1 spurt over an 84-second period brought them within 43-42 with 16:11 to play, capped by a jumper from senior center Ayesha Barkley (East Orange, N.J.)
After the Eagles pulled back ahead by five (47-42) with 15:30 to play, Smith went to work, draining back-to-back three-pointers that gave the Hatters their first lead of the second half with 12:39 left. Adrianne McNally put FGCU back up by one on the next trip down the floor, but sophomore guard Brittany Carannante (Clearwater, Fla.) would put Stetson ahead for good immediately after that when she blew by her defender off the dribble for an easy baseline layup that made it 50-49 with 12:24 to play.
Carranante and freshman guard Kelly Ellison (Columbus, Ga.) buried three-pointers on Stetson's next two possessions, baskets that extended the lead to three possessions. Florida Gulf Coast would never get closer than seven points thereafter. Smith converted a conventional three-point play with 5:39 to play that gave the Hatters a game-high 15-point lead at 66-51. Stetson sealed the win by making four of five free throw attempts in the final minute to thwart any attempt at a comeback by the Eagles.
Smith added three steals to her 20 points and eight assists, playing all but one minute of the game. Sophomore forward Jessica Conner (Cocoa, Fla.) scored 11 points and pulled down nine rebounds while junior forward Ashli Jackson (Opelika, Ala.) added 10 points and nine boards of her own. Ellison chipped in with a career-high nine points.
McNally paced four FGCU scorers in double figures with 18 points and four assists. Brittany Brown had 13 points, eight rebounds and five helpers, Courtney Chihil scored 12 points with nine rebounds and Shannon Murphy contributed 10 points.
“Obviously, I can't say enough about what Sharnesha did for us tonight,” Head Coach Lynn Bria said. “That kind of effort by her is exactly what we need out of our senior point guard. Ashli and Jessica (Conner) played great games as well and this was just a terrific win for our program tonight.”
The first half was a mostly back-and-forth affair with FGCU taking two different six-point leads, surrendering all of the first one and all but two of the second to lead by a pair at intermission. Chihil led the way for the Eagles in the first half with nine points and six rebounds while Jackson posted six points and six boards for the Hatters. Smith had four assists.
The win was Stetson's first in three tries against FGCU and its first win in an A-Sun home opener since beating Georgia State 63-62 on January 6, 2005. The Hatters will now take some time off for final exams and to study up on their next opponent, A-Sun rival Campbell. The Camels and Hatters tip off in the Edmunds Center at 11:30 a.m. Monday, December 15 on Volusia County School Day. Live stats will be available, as well as Bill Topping and Dee Romine's Hatter Vision webcast, at www.GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics.
