Newberry, S.C. – The Newberry women's basketball team took on Carson-Newman at home on Saturday, taking an eight-point lead into the fourth quarter before falling 77-73 under the Eagles' hot shooting in the last period.
 
The Wolves (2-7) came into the game with a SAC-low 23% shooting percentage, but they rediscovered their touch on the night, going 13-29 from deep and hitting 47.5% from the field. But the Eagles (8-2) held a 23-8 advantage in free throw attempts, including 15 trips to the line in the final period as they came back to win the game.
 
The Wolves started out slowly on the night, going scoreless for almost three minutes after hitting their first shot. But when CNU's Skylar Boshears hit a jumper for a 7-2 lead, Courtney Virgo countered with a three-pointer and Newberry was able to capitalize off a forced turnover a minute later to tie things up.
 
The remainder of the first half would be a back-and-forth affair, with the Eagles holding the edge for most of it but only stretching their lead beyond five once, with a three-point play from Campbell Penland putting the score at 30-23. But Talia Roberts soon answered with a steal and fastbreak layup as the Wolves again capitalized on turnovers to trim the deficit, ending the half down two.
 
With the Wolves collapsing to the ball aggressively, they were able to force CNU into frequent mistakes as they turned the ball over 14 times in the first half to Newberry's 10, but they maintained the lead due to a 22-13 advantage on the boards.
 
But after a so-so shooting performance in the first half, the Wolves immediately heated up in the third quarter. They connected on five of their first six attempts to open up a seven-point lead off a Courtney Virgo layup. After the Eagles responded on three straight possessions to cut the deficit to two, Virgo connected on back-to-back triples, giving her eight straight points for the team.
 
With Newberry enjoying an eight-point lead after Talia Roberts hit a three on the last possession of the quarter, CNU came into the fourth knowing they had to change tactics to get back in the game. The Eagles brought an aggressive full-court press on almost every possession in the final period, forcing the Wolves into frequent turnovers.
 
Meanwhile, the whistles started to pile up for Newberry; after recording 12 fouls in the first three quarters, they ended up equaling this total in the final frame. Despite their issues with ball security and foul trouble, the Wolves still put in 16 points in the period, but they could not keep up as CNU scored 11 of their final 28 points from the charity stripe.
 
Virgo connected on a season-high five triples as she led the Wolves with 17 points, followed by Roberts with a 14-point outing. Giulia Bongiorno set a season-best for the team as she dished seven assists on the night to go with 13 points, also tying with Virgo for the team lead with five boards. Ericka Wiseley led the team with three steals to go along with eight points on the night.
 
The Wolves hit the road for their next game as they travel to Greeneville, Tennessee for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff against Tusculum University on Wednesday, December 15.