GAFFNEY, S.C. - Unable to bounce back from a slow shooting performance in the first half, third-seeded Anderson University women's basketball dropped to No. 2 ranked and top-seeded Limestone, 72-38, in the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional final Monday evening in front of a capacity crowd at the Timken Center.
With the setback, the Trojans close their 2014-15 season with a 27-5 overall record, as they dropped their second game to the Saints this season. LC, which has won 32 straight games, moves to 33-1 overall and advances to its second straight Elite Eight.
The Trojans closed the contest shooting 26.7 percent (16-for-60) from the floor, marking their lowest percentage of the season. Senior sharpshooter Lesley Woods connected on all three of AU's 3-pointers on the day, finishing with 11 points in her final game donning the Black and Gold. Junior Jasmine Franklin claimed nine points, while senior Sierra Simpson finished with eight points.
Limestone substitute Celestra Warren paced the Saints with 22
points on 9-of-17 shooting in 26 minutes. Teammate Jasmine Kearse
went 6-for-9 from behind the arc and followed Warren with 18
points. In addition to the combined 40 points from the LC duo, the
Saints won the battle underneath the basket with 48 rebounds
compared to the Trojans' 39.
Both teams shot poorly to open the contest, as the third media timeout arrived with the Conference Carolinas regular-season and tournament champion leading, 10-9. At that point, the teams combined for an 8-for-34 (23.5 percent) shooting performance. Following the break, Anderson took its lone lead of the game at 11-10 with a Jennifer Monroe put-back for her only basket on the evening, coming at the 7:26 mark.
After the bucket, the Saints drained five 3-pointers for the remainder of the half and took a 27-13 lead with under a minute left. Within the shooting spree, Limestone out-scored AU 15-4 in the final 4:13 of the period and set the halftime score at 27-15.
The momentum continued to swing in favor of the top seed, as they took their first 20-point at the 15:58 mark when Precilla Hill knocked in a 15-footer to push the score to 39-18. With the offensive explosion continuing for Limestone, the Saint defense held Anderson to just seven points through the first 10 minutes of the second period, and held at 57-22 lead at that point.
In the final six minutes of the game, AU's senior trio of Simpson, Woods and Jaclyn Moore scored the team's final 10 points, capping off their collegiate careers. Limestone's Chantal Worthy closed the game's scoring with a corner trey and set the final score at 72-38.
Simpson closes her career in the Black and Gold ranking 11th in the program's all-time scoring list (1,049), sixth in rebounds (635), third in assists (444), third in steals (237) and third in games started (118). Woods became the most prolific 3-point shooter in program history, sinking 247 3-pointers for her career, which lands her fifth in conference history.
As a team, Anderson posted its second 20-win season and its second SAC regular-season championship in the last three years. The Trojans also advanced to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the second time in program history with a win over No. 3 ranked Columbus State on Saturday.
Southeast Regional All-Tournament
Team
Jasmine Kearse, Limestone (MVP)
Celestra Warren, Limestone
Precilla Hill, Limestone
Jasmine Franklin, Anderson
Sierra Simpson, Anderson
