Box Score MURFREESBORO, NC- Persistence paid off for the Chowan University women's basketball team on Tuesday afternoon in the Helms Center. After trailing by double-digit points for nearly the entire contest and by as many as ten points at the 7:31 mark in the fourth quarter, the Hawks clawed their way to a 69-67 victory against the Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
The Hawks improve to 3-1 on the season while the Crimson Hawks slide to 3-2 on the year.
Alisha Mobley led all players in the contest with 22 points and made the game-winning lay-up for Chowan with three seconds left in the game.
Jordan Payne followed with 16 points while
Courtni Williams and
Jada Lee notched nine points and eight points, respectively. Payne hauled in a game-high 11 rebounds (four offensive, seven defensive) while Mobley chipped in 10 rebounds (seven offensive, three defensive).
Zhane Brooks and Leslie Stapleton each scored 16 points for the Crimson Hawks in Tuesday's setback. Megan Smith added 12 points in the loss and grabbed eight rebounds (one offensive, seven defensive).
IUP raced to an 11-0 lead at the start of the first quarter using a trio of three-pointers along with a jumper by Brooks. Payne drained a three-pointer from half court at the close of the first quarter, but the Hawks still trailed 20-14.
Chowan was unable to shift the momentum in their favor in the second quarter. Brittany Robinson's layup for the Crimson Hawks with just under one minute remaining before halftime gave IUP their largest advantage of the game (35-21). Lee answered with a three-pointer on the Hawks' next possession, but a three-pointer by Smith left Chowan trailing 38-24 heading into halftime.
Dhyamond Crenshaw's free throw with 1:02 remaining in the third quarter allowed the Hawks to pull within nine points (53-44) but Stapleton's three-pointer on the next play left Chowan looking to battle back from a 56-44 deficit with one quarter remaining.
The Hawks fought back with a vengeance at the start of the fourth quarter. Chowan capitalized on five made free throws to cut the deficit to seven points (56-49) with 7:43 on the clock. Trailing 60-53 with 5:52 remaining, a 6-1 run capped by Crenshaw's layup brought the Hawks within striking distance and made the score 61-59. With the score knotted 65-65, Crenshaw's bucket with 52 seconds left gave the Hawks their first lead of the game. Stapleton answered with a jumper for IUP but Mobley hit a lay-up with three seconds left to push Chowan ahead 69-67. The Crimson Hawks were unable to answer on their next possession, allowing the Hawks to secure the victory.
Chowan travels to Washington D.C. this weekend to compete against the University of Tampa and Saint Anslem. The Hawks will compete on the road through December before returning to the Helms Center on January 7th to take on Johnson C. Smith in CIAA crossover play.
