SALISBURY, N.C. –  Sophomore forward Tamekia Foster (Chesapeake, Va.) scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds as Catawba pulled away from visiting Newberry in the final half to claim a 78-48 victory in South Atlantic Conference women’s basketball action on Wednesday night at Goodman Gym.  Catawba improves to 10-5 overall and 1-1 in the SAC, while Newberry falls to 10-4 and 1-1.

For the Lady Indians, it was certainly was the tale of two halves.  Down by only four at halftime, Newberry had to feel good about their chances to extend their best start in school history to 11-3 and 2-0 in the SAC.  But the Lady Indians collapsed in the final stanza, hitting only 7-of-31 shots to close out the game.  Catawba on the other hand was "en fuego", sealing the victory on the heels of a sublime 15-for-27 shooting performance in the final 20 minutes.

The first half featured three ties and 11 lead changes with Catawba taking a 32-28 lead to the break.  Isiaette Darden (Wilson, NC) hit a three-pointer with 1:08 in the first half to give Catawba a 32-27 lead, the largest by either team in the half, which had been three to that point.
 
The second half was all Catawba as the Lady Indians shot 56% to just 23% for Newberry.  Leading 39-36 with 16:26 to go, Catawba went on a 19-2 run over the next seven and half minutes to grab a 58-38 edge.  The biggest advantage came at 78-46 in the final minute.
 
Christina Carmon (Stafford, Va.) added 12 points off the bench for Catawba as the only other double-digit scorer.  Carnich Bellinger (Greenville, S.C.) was the only Newberry player to reach double figures with 12 and added seven rebounds.
 
Catawba shot 51% (27-of-53) for the game, while Newberry canned just 18-of-65 (28%) shots.  Catawba also enjoyed a 47-38 edge on the boards.

The Lady Indians have a chance to redeem themselves this Saturday afternoon win preseason favorite Wingate invades Eleazer Arena for a 2 p.m. matchup.