AUGUSTA, Ga.
– Augusta State rallied from a double-digit deficit in the
second half only to come up a single point short in a 59-58
non-conference loss to Paine College Thursday night in
Christenberry Fieldhouse.
The setback was the first for the Lady Jaguars in the series since
a 39-38 loss on Jan. 4, 2003 in Christenberry Fieldhouse. The win
lifted the Lady Lions to 2-3 on the young season, while ASU dropped
to 1-5.
Freshman forward Waneta Carlisle came off the bench to post a
double-double for the Lady Jags, scoring a career-high 21 points
and snagging a career-best 14 rebounds. Senior point guard Eboni
Davis booked a double-double of her own with 10 points and 10
boards to go along with four assists and a pair of steals.
Paine registered a pair of double-double efforts as well. Senior
center Areyal LaDeatte netted 18 points, 12 rebounds and three
blocks, while Terria Davis turned in 12 points and 10 boards.
The Lady Lions shot 50 percent in the first half and built a 35-24
halftime lead. They led by as many as 13 early in the second half
before ASU closed to within six on a pair of occasions.
Paine pushed its advantage back to 50-39 with 8:48 remaining before
ASU rattled off 11 straight points, the last two on a pair of
Carlisle free throws, to pull even with 5:22 to play. After trading
3-pointers, ASU grabbed a 55-53 lead on a Carlisle layup with 3:17
left. But the Lady Lions answered with a trey from Shanee'
Butler 58 seconds later to move back in front 56-55.
Carlisle put the Lady Jags in front 58-57 on her bucket with 49
seconds remaining. Paine's LaDeatte answered eight ticks
later with a layup to give the Lady Lions 59-58 advantage. After a
timeout, ASU misfired on a pair of 3-point attempts in the final 20
seconds and Davis' runner at the buzzer was off the mark.
The two teams combined for 100 rebounds, with ASU snagging 60
boards. The Lady Jags set a season-low with just 14 turnovers, but
shot just 28.0 percent from the field.
ASU kicks off Peach Belt Conference play on Saturday, Dec. 5,
hosting Armstrong Atlantic State in a doubleheader slated to begin
at 5:30 p.m., with the women's contest.
