January 29, 2007

Boxscore

LAURBINBURG, N.C.—Junior guard Erika Thompson (Kalamazoo, Mich.) scored a career-high 29 points and St. Andrews Presbyterian College shot 61.3% in the second half to rally past Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference foe Queens University of Charlotte on Monday evening in Harris Court.

The No.3 East Region ranked Lady Knights out scored the Royals 49-26 in the second period to remain perfect at home on the season at 8-0. SAPC sits in a three-way tie for second place in the CVAC standing with a 13-4 overall mark and 11-2 conference ledger. QUC dropped its eighth straight game, falling to 4-15 overall and 1-11 in the CVAC.

The Lady Royals dominated the first half taking a 12-point lead, 39-27, at halftime. The Lady Knights, who were held without a field goal in the first six minutes, only shot 25.8% in the opening stanza while Queens went 40% from the floor. The Royals also held a 26-18 advantage on the backboards, scoring 11 second-change points to none by the Knights. Senior Phylicia Turner (Greensboro, N.C.) led Queens into the locker room with 16 of her team-high 19 points in the first 20 minutes while junior teammate Erinn Hayes (Charlotte, N.C.) also drained 11 of her 15 points in the first half.

St. Andrews turned things around at the intermission and quickly erased the 12-point deficit with a 17-5 run in the first 6:04 of the final frame. Queens kept battling and a junior Ciera Brown (Sanford, N.C.) layup with 9:37 provided the Lady Royals with a five-point edge, 54-49. However, the Lady Knights pulled away with a late 21-5 rally over the next seven-plus minutes. Senior Ashley Mitchell scored eight points during that span to help catapult SAPC into a double-digit lead, 70-59, with just over two minutes left. The Knights maintained control for the final two minutes coasting home to the 11-point victory.

Thompson scored her career-high 29 points on 11-of-15 shooting including four 3-pointers. Senior Diana Martinez (Woodbridge, Va.) followed with a season-high 12 points including a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Mitchell scored all nine of her points in the second half while dishing out a season-high eight assists. Junior Danielle Norman (Bronx, N.Y.) added eight points and senior April Henderson (Woodbridge, Va.) chipped in with six rebounds, four points, and four assists. Thompson and Norman each grabbed a team-high seven boards.

Brown notched a double-double for the visitors with 10 points and 10 rebounds while swatting away three blocks.

St. Andrews will visit CVAC leading Barton College (Wilson, N.C.) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The Knights handed the Lady Bulldogs their only conference loss back on November 21 (54-42).