The Alice College Lady Eagles grabbed a huge lead early and made it stand up on their way to a nice 76-71 victory over the visiting Carolina University Lady Bruins. The non-conference matchup was played Tuesday, November 23rd.
In the opening period, senior guard Ali May pumped in 7 points, and her squad was stingy on the defensive side. Carolina would only produce 6 points, and ALC would roar out to a 17-6 lead after ten minutes.
In the second stanza, senior guard Haley Hall would drain a trifecta to preserve the double-digit lead before the Lady Bruins attempted to rally. Fortunately, Hall’s 15 first-half points would enable her squad to take a 37-27 lead at intermission.
As the third period began, the North Carolina club would begin to slowly chip away at the deficit. The Caney Creek club would go inside to senior center Alexandria Clifton who produced 5 of her points. However, their foes would take the quarter by 6 points., and the score read 53-49 entering the final period.
In the closing ten minutes, the teams battled, as both desperately sought the win. However, the hosts would hold their advantage the remainder of the way as the final score would be the closest that Carolina got.
For Alice Lloyd (5-3; 1-1 RSC), Hall led the way with 24 points (8-16 FG including 4-6 bombs). She added 5 assists, which tied senior guard Hannah Kash for the lead. She was followed in double-digits by May and Clifton with 13 and 12 points respectively. Clifton swatted 3 shots.
Sophomore guard Hannah Malcomson added 9 points and 3 assists while freshman Madison Thompson grabbed 8 boards and tied Kash and senior center Bailee Brainard with 2 steals apiece.
ALC finished shooting 54.2% (26-48) from the field and 50% (8-16) from long range. They connected on 67% (16-24) from the charity line while adding 36 rebounds, 18 assists, 9 steals, and 7 blocks.
CU (1-6)) was paced by Denasia Mitchell with 20 points. Her squad finished shooting 38.6% (27-70) from the field and 0% (0-2) from behind the arc. From the foul line, they finished 17-29 for 58.9%. They also added 37 rebounds, 5 assists, and 20 steals.
The Lady Eagles return to action next Tuesday in a big conference tilt at home against Midway University. Tipoff is set for this women’s/men’s doubleheader at 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm.