ROCK HILL, S.C. – Despite making a comeback after a third quarter drought, No. 6 Anderson (21-8) could not overtake No. 3 Carson-Newman (13-16) on Wednesday afternoon at the South Atlantic Conference Championship hosted by Rock Hill Sports & Entertainment Center.
"Really proud of how hard the girls fought today during a tough physical basketball game," said head coach Jonathon Barbaree. We made a great push to cut it to two, but just came up a little short."
"Now we have to play the waiting game in hopes that our resume is enough to get us in next week," added Barbaree.
Following a back-and-forth first half that saw the Trojans down by only one-point at the half, 36-35, Carson-Newman went on a 11-2 run to go up by 10.
AU's Nelliah Wilson picked up her third foul late in the third quarter. Reserve Jessica Cooper entered the game with the Trojans down 12. Cooper had a career nine minutes of action, scoring nine points on 4-of-6 shooting. The native of South Plainfield, NJ, also pulled down two rebounds and recorded one assist and a blocked shot to help pull the Black and Gold to within a possession.
A quick 7-3 run to start the fourth quarter which included one of the five three-point baskets hit by sophomore Ashlyn Sheridan brought AU within one with 8:31 to play. Carson-Newman responded to any push the Trojans tried to make. The score hovered around a 5-point deficit for the middle half of the quarter. Anderson was able to cut the lead to two points on made free-throws by Zamiya Passmore (3:44) and then again on a made layup by Wilson (2:18). However, C-N's Makayla Alvey hit a dagger three-pointer at the one-minute mark to extend the lead back to five. Anderson could not get any closer than the five-point margin dropping the contest, 82-75.
AU's Sheridan scored a team-high 17 points shooting 5-of-9 from behind the arc. Junior Diamond McDowell recorded her 15th double-double of the season netting 13 points and 10 rebounds. Graduate Brittney Stafford, seniors Passmore and Wilson each chipped in 10 points apiece.
Carson-Newman placed four players in double-digit scoring with Alvey scoring a game-high 22 points for the Eagles.
Anderson will have to wait until selection Sunday to know its NCAA fate. Carson-Newman moves on to play No. 2 Lenoir-Rhyne in the semifinals.
