Statesboro, Ga. - The Stetson women's basketball team (7-3) used a 14-2 run midway through the second half to put away a pesky Georgia Southern (2-7) effort Thursday evening in a 61-51 victory over the Lady Eagles at Hanner Fieldhouse. Junior guard Victoria McGowan (Inkster, Mich.) led the Hatters to the win with 19 points and seven rebounds.
Although Stetson started strong and led by as many as nine points with 11:55 to go in the first half, GSU chipped away and held the Hatters to just one field goal in the last 6:28 before intermission. The Lady Eagles would use a second-chance putback by Mimi DuBose with 17 seconds left in the period to take a 25-23 lead into the locker room.
The early portions of the second half were a back and forth affair as neither team led by more than five points. A 7-0 spurt by Georgia Southern culminated in Anna Claire Knight's basket with 11:14 to play that gave her team a 41-39 lead. 10 seconds later freshman forward Jazmin Garcia (Peekskill, N.Y.) drew the Hatters back level, followed by a defensive stop and subsequent bucket from freshman guard Jama Sharp (Mooresville, Ind.) to give Stetson a 43-41 advantage heading into the under-12 media timeout.
Those baskets started the 14-2 run that would see junior guard Shanasa Sanders (Jacksonville, Fla.) get to the rim and the free throw line for nine points in two minutes and 20 seconds, leaving her Hatters up by 10 with five minutes to play. Although the Lady Eagles would slice that lead down to 55-51 with just over a minute to go, Sharp and McGowan ensured Stetson's victory by going 6-6 at the foul line in the final 51 seconds.
Stetson's win was just the second in Statesboro in program history and the first win over GSU since 1996, snapping a four-game skid in the 32-game series, one of the oldest and longest rivalries in Hatters history.
McGowan's 19-point, seven-rebound effort was supplemented by Sanders (14 points, four assists) and Sharp (eight points). Although she was held scoreless on the evening, sophomore forward Sasha Sims (Fayetteville, Ga.) collected a team-high eight rebounds in her home state. DuBose scored 16 points to lead Georgia Southern with Meredyth Frye adding a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double.
The Hatters are back in action locally at 2:00 pm Sunday, December 11 when they visit Volusia County rival Bethune-Cookman. "Voice of the Hatters" Bill Topping will call the action from Moore Gymnasium live on Hatter Vision audio; a link to B-CU's Game Tracker is also available at GoHatters.com.
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