DeLand, Fla. ? Playing with just eight players after the tragic passing of immediate members of both Sharnesha Smith's and Shayna Swinson's families earlier this week, the Stetson women's basketball team (8-14, 5-8 Atlantic Sun) came together to defeat visiting Lipscomb 63-46 at the Edmunds Center Saturday afternoon. Sophomore guard Tierra Brown (Orlando, Fla.) scored 17 points and handed out a career-high eight assists as Stetson ended a five-game losing streak and won at home for the first time since December 15.
Freshman guard Kelly Ellison (Columbus, Ga.) hit a jumper with 46 seconds left in the first half that gave Stetson a 24-23 halftime advantage; the Hatters went on to hold the lead throughout the second half. With 8:33 remaining in the game, Lipscomb's Cree Nix made a basket while being fouled to cut the deficit to 42-39. She missed the free throw and the Lady Bisons would never get any closer as Stetson went on a 10-0 run over the next four minutes to effectively put the game out of reach. The Hatters held Lipscomb without a field goal for the final 3:49 of the game and to seven total points in the final eight and a half minutes.
Sophomore forward Jessica Conner (Cocoa, Fla.) and junior forward Ashli Jackson (Opelika, Ala.) scored 12 points each; Conner had nine rebounds and three steals while Jackson pulled down five boards. Senior center Ayesha Barkley (East Orange, N.J.) notched six points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Jilian Partin scored 13 points to lead Lipscomb (4-17, 2-10 A-Sun), adding six rebounds, two assists and a steal to her totals. Anna Bowers scored 11 points with six rebounds. Brittany Duerk grabbed a team-high eight rebounds and Jenna Bartsokas added five assists and four steals.
The Hatters hit the road to face first place ETSU Thursday at 7 p.m. before continuing on to Spartanburg, S.C. to take on USC Upstate at 4 p.m. Saturday. A-Sun.TV will be available for both contests; Stetson fans can also log onto their Hatter Vision accounts to hear Bill Topping call the action at www.GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics.
