HICKORY, N.C. - The Newberry College women's basketball team dropped its first South Atlantic Conference game of the season by losing on the road to the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears Saturday, 61-59.
Despite the loss, Laura Marquardt (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) had one of her best games ever by earning a career high 31 points and eight rebounds. She shot 10-for-22 from the field and a blistering 6-for-12 from three-point range. Janine Ward (Tallevast, Fla.) tied Marquardt for the game high in rebounds with eight and also earned a team high six assists.
Brittany Mitch (McLean, Va.) led the Bears to victory with a team high 24 points on 10-for-17 shooting. Amber Holt (Charlotte, N.C.) led Lenoir-Rhyne in both rebounds (7) and assists (7).
The first half was tight as both teams came out and played hard. Neither team could earn more than a four point lead until the final five minutes of the half. With Newberry leading 19-18, the scarlet and gray finished the half on a 9-5 run to enter the locker room with a five point lead.
Newberry shot well in the opening half and nailed 41.4% of their attempts from the field. They played strong defense as well and held Lenoir-Rhyne to 10-for-28 shooting. The scarlet and gray also took advantage of the opposition's turnovers and earned 10 points off TO's, twice as many as the Bears.
Marquardt helped the scarlet and gray in their best half of the night by earning team highs in both points (14) and rebounds (5). Holt played well in the first period, earning team highs in rebounds (4) and assists (4).
Lenoir-Rhyne came out of the break and took the fight right to the ladies from Newberry. With NC leading 34-38, the Bears went on a 17-5 run to give them an eight point lead. Newberry never gave up and cut the deficit to 1 point with just over a minute remaining.
A pair of free throws gave L-R a three point lead but NC still had 17 seconds to send the game into overtime. Newberry's Helen McKinney put up her fifth three-point attempt of the night but it was blocked by Mitch. Marquardt collected the rebound but was fouled before she could shoot the game-tying attempt. She made the first free throw attempt and missed the second but Newberry could not collect the rebound. Cameron Sealey (Gastonia, N.C.) grabbed the board which sealed the two point victory for the Bears.
Newberry continued to play great defense in the second half but Lenoir-Rhyne shot lights out from the field anyway. They shot 53.8% from the field and 60% from three-point range. Newberry shot 38.5% from the floor and 55.6% from downtown. Newberry also struggled to take advantage of their defensive stops, earning only four points off turnovers.
After only earning two points in the first half, Helen McKinney (Owensboro, Ky.) stepped it up in the final period and earned 10 points. Mitch had her best half of the night, earning 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting from the field.
Despite the loss, the scarlet and gray still played solid basketball. They shot 40% from the floor and 44.4% from three-point range. They also held their opponents to only 61 points, a total that any team should be proud of.
With their first SAC loss, the Newberry College women's basketball team now stands at 10-5 overall and 3-1 in the SAC. They will return home this Wednesday to take on Lincoln Memorial at 6 p.m. Lenoir-Rhyne (13-2, 3-1 in the SAC) will travel to Mars Hill this Wednesday at 6 p.m.
