Lady Eagles grind out 49-46 victory over Bulldogs
February 2, 2013

Lady Eagles grind out 49-46 victory over Bulldogs

WINGATE, N.C. - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles basketball team (12-5, 6-4 South Atlantic Conference) held on for a 49-46 victory over the Wingate Bulldogs (10-9, 4-5 South Atlantic Conference) at Cuddy Arena on Saturday afternoon. The win is Carson-Newman’s second straight, and the Lady Eagles have now won three of their last four games, including the last two on the road in conference play.

WINGATE, N.C. - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles basketball team (12-5, 6-4 South Atlantic Conference) held on for a 49-46 victory over the Wingate Bulldogs (10-9, 4-5 South Atlantic Conference) at Cuddy Arena  on Saturday afternoon.

The win is Carson-Newman's second straight, and the Lady Eagles have now won three of their last four games, including the last two on the road in conference play.

"I'm really proud of our team," said Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey. "To come over here and get this win, it's huge in conference play – anytime you go on the road and get a 'W' it's huge. We're really proud of the defensive effort we put out tonight."

Carson-Newman was led in scoring by two players with 10 points: Courdne Miles (Burlington, N.C.) and Takyah Gilmore (Alcoa, Tenn.). Gilmore scored eight of her 10 points in the first half, providing a spark off the bench for the Lady Eagles.

After Wingate opened the game on a 7-2 run, the Lady Eagles responded with a 7-0 run to even the score at nine with just under 12 minutes to play in the half. After the game was tied at 11, the Bulldogs went on a 6-1 run to lead 17-12 with 6:37 remaining in the half. Gimore keyed Carson-Newman's next 6-0 run and hit an open jumper with 3:50 left in the half to give Carson-Newman its first lead of 18-17.

Jai Jai McLaughlin scored the final bucket of the first half to give the Lady Eagles a 21-19 lead at halftime. Wingate outscored Carson-Newman 12-7 to begin the second half, but the Lady Eagles would respond with its largest run of the game.

Carson-Newman went on a 14-3 run to grow the lead to 42-34 with 6:44 left in the game. Wingate would bounce back in the late minutes, cutting Carson-Newman's lead to four points with 1:05 remaining. The lead would go as small as two points in the final minute, yet the Lady Eagles hit crucial foul shots down the stretch to escape with the three-point victory.

The win is Carson-Nemwan's first in Wingate since the 2010-11 season, and the Lady Eagles have now won four of the past five regular season meetings against the Bulldogs. Wingate was led in scoring by Morgan McGee's 14 points and she was joined in double figures by the 12 points of Janitsha Williams.

Carson-Newman returns home for its next three games, first against rival Tusculum on Wednesday Feb. 6 at 6 p.m. Coverage of the game is available on the Coca-Cola Eagle Sports Network, beginning with the Farm Bureau Countdown to Tipoff at 5:45 p.m. and the broadcast is also available on www.cneagles.com.

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