NEWBERRY - An impressive afternoon on the boards by senior Brittany Brown and freshman Haylee Lepaio helped the Newberry women's basketball team to a 50-46 victory over the visiting Lincoln Memorial Lady Railsplitters.
Lepaio (Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia) and Brown (Fort Myers, Fla.) recorded 15 rebounds each to lead the Wolves (13-9, 8-6 South Atlantic Conference) to a season high 55 rebounds.
The Lady Railsplitters (11-11, 6-8) and Wolves combined for three ties and four lead changes in the opening period. Newberry led by as many as four points twice, while LMU took a five-point lead once in the first half.
The first four-point margin came at 17:16 after Lepaio opened the game with a pair of made jumpers. LMU countered the Wolves opening four points with an 11-2 run, giving the Lady Railsplitters a five-point lead with 12:29 remaining in the first half.
A 3-point make by junior Neicey Lewis (Riverdale, Ga.) was soon followed by a fast break layup by freshman Zara Pearson (Echuca, Victoria, Australia) knotting the score at 11-11. A small run by Lincoln Memorial gave the Lady Railsplitters a four-point advantage, before the Wolves outlasted LMU and carried a 21-19 lead into the locker room.
Lepaio led Newberry with eight points in the first half, while Brown pulled down eight boards in the opening period.
Newberry opened the second half strong jumping out to a five-point lead after Lewis' second 3-pointer of the afternoon. LMU fought back to take a four point lead with a little over six minutes remaining in the game, before Newberry went on a 9-0 run to regain the lead and jump out to a five-point advantage.
LMU promptly cut the Wolves lead down to one-point before a Dayshalee Salaman foul put Lewis at the line with 28 seconds left in the game. Lewis hit both free throws putting Newberry ahead by three. A layup by Salaman was blocked by Brown giving Newberry the ball with less than 20 seconds remaining.
Another pair of makes by Lewis at the free throw line and a single make by Pearson secured a 50-46 win for the Wolves.
Lepaio tallied 13 points and 15 boards giving the freshman her 12th double-double of the season. Lewis recorded 13 points and six rebounds of her own. Brown had a career night on the glass collecting 15 rebounds topping her previous career high of seven rebounds.
Newberry continues a two-game home stretch on Wednesday when it hosts Wingate at 6 p.m. for the Wolves annual Play 4 Kay game.
