NEWBERRY – The Newberry women’s basketball team (18-8, 14-8 SAC) closed out the regular season on a high note in an 87-64 victory at Eleazer Arena over the Brevard Tornados (6-20, 2-20 SAC).

Newberry enters the South Atlantic Conference Championship as one of the hottest teams in the league, winning seven straight games.

The Wolves have earned the No. 5 seed for the conference tournament, and will travel to Carson-Newman to play the Lady Eagles in the 2017 SAC Women’s Basketball Championship quarterfinal round on Wednesday, March 1. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. The full schedule is for the championship is listed below.

Newberry’s Nicola Handreck posted her fifth double-double of the season with a 30-point, 10-rebound performance. The junior guard nearly notched her first career triple-double, dishing out nine assists on the afternoon which tied a season-high.

Handreck had one of her best shooting nights of the season connecting on 8-of-16 from beyond the arc in 36 minutes. The total of eight sits runner-up to the nine she hit at Carson-Newman back in January of this season.

With today’s performance, the product out of Heywood, Victoria, Australia has tied the school record for three-pointers made in a single season with 73.

Newberry dominated the first half holding a 19-point advantage heading into the break. Brevard would claw back within eight points in the third quarter on the shoulders of Madison Lenox, however, the Wolves put together a 29-point final quarter to seal their 14th conference win.

Lenox, the league's leading scorer this season, finished the game with 26 points and 11 rebounds.

Meg Essex was effective in just 17 minutes on the floor shooting 6-of-11 from the field. The sophomore center dropped 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds. 

Sophomore guard Shelby Britten was in double figures for the 20th time this season tallying 13 points. Britten also grabbed seven rebounds and handed out six assists.

The lone Newberry senior Jaya Schultz was honored on the floor after scoring 11 points on 4-of-5 from the field and grabbing five rebounds. The Santa Clarita, California native was flanked by family members and closed the final home game of her career with over 500 career-points and over 430 rebounds. She remains one of the three members on the team who won the 2015 SAC Championship joining Handreck and Hannah Lepaio. 

It was the 20th time this season in which Newberry had at least three starters in double figures. The Wolves hold a 17-3 record when accomplishing the feat.

2017 SAC Women’s Basketball Championship Schedule:

Wednesday, March 1 (at Highest Seeds)

Game 1: #1 Lincoln Memorial vs. Queens, 6:00pm

Game 2: #4 Carson-Newman vs. #5 Newberry, 6:00pm

Game 3: #2 Anderson vs. #7 Catawba, 7:00pm

Game 4: #3 Wingate vs. #6 Lenoir-Rhyne, 6:00pm

Saturday, March 4 (Timmons Arena, Greenville, S.C.)

Game 5: winner game 1 vs. winner game 2, Noon

Game 6: winner game 3 vs. winner game 4, 2:30pm

Sunday, March 5 (Timmons Arena, Greenville, S.C.)

Game 7: winner game 5 vs. winner game 6, 1:00pm