BANNER ELK, N.C. – The Chowan Women's Basketball team had a couple of looks in the final seconds of the contest in a 55-53 loss to Lees-McRae in Conference Carolinas action on Saturday afternoon.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 53, Lees-McRae 55
RECORDS | Chowan 3-13 (3-9), Lees-McRae 6-12 (3-7)
LOCATION | Banner Elk, N.C. (Williams Gym)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Monique Jones recorded her second double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Mariah Coker led the Hawks with 15 points and added seven rebounds. Olivia Gaither chipped in with seven points.
The Hawks outrebounded the Bobcats 54-31 including 11 more offensive rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter:
Monique Jones started the scoring for the Hawks with four quick points. Destiny Robinson added a pair from the stripe to force a Lees-McRae timeout with Chowan leading 6-0. Keibra Hopkins joined the scoring on a putback to continue the run for the Hawks.
Lees-McRae would net their first points of the contest with a small 5-0 run. Monique Jones went 1-2 from the stripe to push the score to 9-5. LMC edged closer with a three pointer with two minutes remaining in the opening quarter.
Monique Jones went 1-2 from the charity stripe to give the Hawks a 10-8 lead at the first intermission.
Second Quarter:
Lees-McRae took their first lead of the game, 11-10, with the opening three points of the quarter. Olivia Gaither handed the lead back to the Hawks, 12-10, with a basket. The lead switched hands again as LMC connected from deep and added a jumper to lead 16-12.
Monique Jones slowed the run with a basket before the Bobcats tallied back-to-back baskets. Chowan picked up their next six points at the stripe with Mariah Coker, Brelynn Young, and Olivia Gaither connecting to close the gap to 21-20 with a minute to play in the half.
LMC tallied a free throw before Mariah Coker knocked down a triple. The Bobcats scored right before the buzzer to lead 24-23 at the half.
Third Quarter:
Destiny Robinson started the scoring in the half with a putback layup. Both teams hit a lull in the action with over a three minute span of scoreless action until Mariah Coker connected from the charity stripe to swing the momentum back to Chowan. Keibra Hopkins added a bucket to give the Hawks the slight advantage 28-26.
LMC regained the slight lead with a pair from the stripe and a quick bucket. Monique Jones evened the score with a layup to spark an 11-0 run. Jones added a pair from the stripe before a Mariah Coker 1-2 effort from the stripe and a three pointer. Aniah Patterson knocked down a triple to lead 39-30.
Chowan led 39-32 at the end of the third.
Fourth Quarter:
Lees-McRae started the quarter with an 11-2 run to regain the lead 43-31. Demetria Bland ended the run with a driving layup. The Bobcats would answer at the other end before Olivia Gaither knocked down a triple to swing the lead back to Chowan 46-45.
Mariah Coker knocked down a corner trey to keep the lead in favor of the Hawks. Coker added a coast-to-coast layup to stretch the advantage to six, 51-45.
LMC scored four quick points to trim the deficit to 51-49 and force a Chowan timeout. The Bobcats took the lead by one, 52-51, with a three pointer. Monique Jones quickly gave the lead back before the Bobcats regained the advantage, 55-53.
Chowan had a couple of good looks at the game-tying and game-winning attempts in the final seconds but were unable to connect.
UP NEXT
Chowan makes the trip to Tigerville, S.C. to take on North Greenville on Monday, January 20. Tip-off is at 12pm in Conference Carolinas action.
