Kennesaw, Ga. ? Senior point guard Sharnesha Smith (Kingsland, Ga.) continued her excellent play this season with 19 points, seven assists and four rebounds to lead the Stetson women's basketball team (7-9, 4-3 Atlantic Sun) to a 77-65 win at Kennesaw State (6-8, 3-3 A-Sun) Thursday night. The Hatters shot nearly 50 percent from the floor, committed just five turnovers and rallied from a 13-point first half deficit to win at the KSU Convocation Center for the third time in the last four seasons.
Kennesaw State blitzed Stetson right out of the gate, taking a 5-0 lead before the Hatters could even attempt a field goal and getting ahead 11-0 just 2:55 into the game. The Lady Owls slowly extended their lead, taking a game-high 13-point advantage when Britteny Henderson made two free throws to make it 24-13 with 10:23 left in the half.
The Hatters took off at that point, however, shooting off on a 19-2 run to take a 30-26 lead they would never relinquish. Smith scored seven points and sophomore guard Brittany Carannante (Clearwater, Fla.) added five during that streak. After a Montinique Nixon bucket brought KSU within two, Stetson reeled off another eight unanswered points to go up by 10, 38-28, with 1:03 remaining before halftime. The score at intermission was 38-30.
In contrast to Saturday evening at the Edmunds Center, when the Hatters let a similar halftime margin slip away in a 53-52 loss to ETSU, Stetson never let the Lady Owls closer than five points in the second half. A key 6-0 spurt in a 97-second span midway through the second half restored the lead to double figures and Stetson was not seriously threatened again. Angie Smith hit a three-pointer for KSU with 6:54 left to cut the deficit to six, but Carannante answered with a trifecta one minute later that proved to be the dagger.
Carannante made six of 10 shots from the floor, including two for two from beyond the arc, to finish with 15 points, adding seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block to a complete effort. Junior forward Ashli Jackson (Opelika, Ala.) scored 12 points and hit two three-pointers of her own while freshman guard Kelly Ellison (Columbus, Ga.) continued her hot recent play with eight points, four rebounds and three steals. Freshman guard Lyllique Roman (Poinciana, Fla.) turned in perhaps her finest game in a Hatter uniform to date, scoring a season-high nine points and blocking a shot in just 13 minutes.
Henderson notched an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double to lead Kennesaw State while Jennifer Baker also had a double-double, putting up 15 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Angie Smith scored 14 points with six rebounds, two assists and a block.
The Hatters return to action Saturday at 2 p.m. to take on Mercer at the University Center in Macon, Ga. Stetson swept the Bears last season and will be looking to win in Macon for the third year in a row. The A-Sun.TV webcast is available for Saturday's game along with Bill Topping's commentary on Hatter Vision at www.GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics.
