Wednesday, February 12, 2003

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. -- Four free throws from Tusculum College sophomore Julie Maples (Knoxville, Tenn.) in the final 22 seconds helped seal the Pioneers' upset bid of Catawba College Wednesday night at Alpine Arena. Tusculum (14-8, 6-3 SAC) came into the game ranked ninth in the South Atlantic Region; Catawba (16-5, 7-2 SAC) was ranked second. (Box Score)

The win by Tusculum is the first-ever over a Catawba squad, ending an eight-game losing streak.

The Pioneers opened the game with a quick 7-2 burst in the first two minutes, five from the hands of Maples. After the Lady Indians answered with a three-point basket from senior Lynn Morancie (Houston, Texas), TC went on a 6-2 run to widen the lead to seven points, 13-6 with 13:26 to play.

Catawba managed to cut the lead to five points on several occasions, notably a layup from Morancie with 8:27 on the clock. The Pioneers then hit a 6-1 stretch to grab their first double-digit lead of the contest, 27-17. The teams traded baskets for a 29-19 score before Catawba rallied with a 16-2 run to grab its first lead since its opening possession. After a TC timeout with 1:21 to play, the Pioneers scored the last five points of the first half to take a 36-35 lead into halftime.

Tusculum shot 55.2 percent from the floor in the first half, led by senior Whitley Campbell (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) and Maples, who combined to hit 10-of-10 from the floor for 23 points. After shooting 35.3 percent in the first 14 minutes, Catawba hit six out of its last eight shots.

The second half opened the opposite way the first half did. Catawba opened with an 11-3 run to grab its biggest lead of the game, seven points (46-39), five minutes into the second frame. TC scored the next three points to narrow the deficit, but sophomore Ashley Cox's (Richmond, Va.) three kicked the lead back up to seven. Alternating baskets preceded another run, this time by Tusculum as the Pioneers scored eight straight points to grab the lead for the first time in the second period.

With the score tied 56-56 with 8:54 to play, Cox went to the free throw line. She hit the first, but missed the second. Tusculum proceeded to score the next five points for a 61-57 lead. The Lady Indians would not be denied and responded with five consecutive points of their own, capped off by a three-point play from Morancie, to regain the lead 62-61 with 4:37 left in the game.

It turns out that would be the last time Catawba would lead. A steal and jumper from TC senior Candice Combs (Clayton, N.C.) put the Pioneers up one, 63-62 with just under four minutes to play.

Catawba continued to hang in there and an outside jump shot from junior Danyel Locklear (Pembroke, N.C.) made the score 67-66 in favor of the Pioneers with 44 seconds left. Tusculum senior Lea Anne Jaynes (Greeneville, Tenn.) went to the line, shooting two free throws. Jaynes missed both, but the Pioneers regained possession on an offensive rebound by Combs.

Maples went to the line and hit both shots from the charity stripe. The Lady Indians countered quickly on a layup from senior Dorthell Little (Rockingham, N.C.) to trim the lead to one, 69-68, with 10 seconds remaining. Four seconds later, after a Catawba foul, Maples made two more free throws for the 71-68 final margin. A desperation shot by the Lady Indians fell short at the buzzer.

Maples led all scorers with 21 points. Campbell and Combs posted similar numbers, with Combs scoring 19 points with eight rebounds while Campbell had 17 and eight. Combs established a new single-season Tusculum record with 58 blocks. She broke her own record she set last year.

For the Lady Indians, Locklear led four in double figures with 17 points and eight rebounds. Cox and Morancie tallied 16 points each with Little adding 11.

Both teams will be in action this Saturday. Up next for Tusculum is a travel date with Lenoir-Rhyne College at 6 p.m. Catawba hits the road for a 2 p.m. contest at Mars Hill College.