HICKORY, N.C. - The Anderson University women's basketball team rallied from an eight-point deficit with less than six minutes left in the game, but could not overtake Lenoir-Rhyne, as the Bears topped AU, 62-55, in South Atlantic Conference action Wednesday night at Shuford Gymnasium.
Anderson (7-12, 3-8 SAC) suffered its third consecutive setback, while Lenoir-Rhyne (10-9, 7-4 SAC) won its second straight and fourth in its last five games en route to sweeping the season series with AU.
After taking their only lead of the night at 3-2 inside the opening minute of action, the Trojans suffered a scoring drought of more than six minutes, allowing Lenoir-Rhyne to go on a 13-2 run and open a 14-5 cushion midway through the opening half.
Anderson inched back within 26-22 inside the final two minutes of the frame on a jumper by sophomore Tilde Ahlin, but L-R closed the half with two free throws and a layup to take a 30-22 lead to the locker room.
The Bears scored six unanswered points out of the break to claim their largest lead of the contest, 36-22, with 18:27 remaining, but the Trojans steadily chipped away and climbed within four twice before edging within a single point three times inside the final 3:24 but were unable to take their first lead since the opening minute.
Senior Alexa Neal paced the Trojans with 12 points and dished out three assists, while sophomore forward Breonda Shannon shared game-high rebounding honors with seven boards.
Lenoir-Rhyne's Cameron Sealey, who is tied for first in the league in scoring, lead all scorers with 19 points, while Whitley Culler tallied 13 points and Precious Elkins added 10.
Anderson returns to the Abney Center for a brief one-game homestand on Saturday when the Trojans entertain Mars Hill. Tip-off at the Abney Athletic Center is slated for 2 p.m.
