DeLand, Fla. - The second-largest crowd in Edmunds Center women's basketball history (1,876 fans) saw host Stetson (3-5) let a late one-point lead slip through their grasp on Tuesday morning in a 54-49 loss to visiting Georgia Southern (2-8). Senior guard Tierra Brown (Orlando, Fla.) scored 15 points for the Hatters while senior center Natasha Graboski (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds to go along with eight points.
Stetson led 27-23 at halftime before a 13-5 GSU burst out of the locker room put the Eagles ahead 36-32 with 16:10 remaining. Georgia Southern would continue to keep the Hatters at bay and the large crowd of Volusia County schoolchildren relatively silent for the next nine minutes or so, going up by as many as nine points with 7:46 left.
The Hatters dug in and went on a 10-0 run over the ensuing four minutes to take their first and only lead of the second half, using a Brown jumper with 3:45 left to take a 49-48 advantage. Logan Youngblood would get the visitors the lead back with a layup at the 1:25 mark and the Hatters did not score a single point in the final 3:45 as the Eagles went on to win 54-49.
The true turning point of the game likely came with 58 seconds left in regulation as Stetson sophomore guard Victoria McGowan (Inkster, Mich.) appeared to make a layup and draw a blocking foul on GSU, but was instead called for a charge, nullifying what would have been the go-ahead basket and fouling out in the process. Eagles guard Jamie Navarro made four free throws down the stretch and a pair of Brown game-tying three-point attempts went off the iron in the final seconds.
Senior forward Jessica Conner (Cocoa, Fla.) joined Brown in double figures with 10 points, adding five rebounds and two blocks. Brown dished out four assists for the Hatters and notched a team-high three steals. Navarro led Georgia Southern with 20 points while Meredyth Frye grabbed a team-leading 10 rebounds.
Stetson is back in action Monday, Dec. 20 when it opens the Hatter Classic at 1 p.m. against Youngstown State. Winthrop faces Maine at 3:30 p.m. while the next day's action will see the Hatters face Maine at 1 p.m. and Winthrop take on YSU at 3:30 p.m. Live Stats will be available for all four games while Hatter Vision will likely be in effect for the two Stetson contests only. Both services are available exclusively at GoHatters.com, the official online home of Stetson Athletics. Fans are also encouraged to become a fan of the Stetson Athletics Facebook page and follow @StetsonSID on Twitter (twitter.com/stetsonsid).
