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Jennifer Gardner scored 25 points and had 18 rebounds to lead the Western Carolina Catamounts to the 69-59 win over the College of Charleston in women's basketball action in front of 409 fans at the
John Kresse Arena.
The College of Charleston drops its second home game to go to 7-11 overall and 4-8 in the Southern Conference. The Catamounts sweep the series with the Cougars and go to 9-11 and 5-8 in the league.
The race was tight in the first half with the Cougars leading 12-11 with 11:49 left before a 20-0 run by the Catamounts over the next five minutes gave them the 31-12 lead with 6:53 left in the first. However, the Cougars fought back to cut the deficit to the 10-point 27-37 score at intermission. Charleston shot just 28.1 percent from the field, while Western Carolina shot 47.4 from the floor, including a 17-for-22 effort from the free-throw line.
Western Carolina came out strong in the second and quickly jumped out to a 21-point 48-27 lead after going on an 11-0 run to start the final half. The Cougars were able to cut the lead to six at 48-28 with 13:04 left in the game before the Catamounts rallied to take the lead back up to double digits at 11 with just over 10 minutes to play. Unfortunately, Charleston was unable to stage another comeback as Western Carolina connected on 10 of their next 12 free throws down the stretch to clinch the win.
For the game Charleston shot 29.9 percent from the field while Western Carolina shot 37.5. The Catamounts controlled the rebounds with the 53-30 advantage, but Charleston came away with fewer turnovers at 15-28. For the game the Catamounts were 29-for-37 from the line for 78.4 percent, while the Cougars were 15-of-21 for 71.4 percent.
Erica Irick led the Cougars with 16 points, followed by Marketta Talley and Patrice, who both had 10 points apiece. Melissa Chambers led the Cougars with eight rebounds. Following Gardner's 25 points was Shaketia Barnes with 11 points and Lori Tanner with 10. Gardner's 18 rebounds led the Catamounts.
The College of Charleston travels to East Tennessee State Monday for a 7:00 PM tip-off, while Western Carolina continues on the road to Chattanooga Feb. 5th for a 7:00 PM game.
