Box Score
Box score
HARTSVILLE, S.C. - As four Trojans found double figures in
scoring, Anderson University women's basketball added a key South
Atlantic Conference victory over league newcomer Coker, 65-48,
Saturday afternoon at Timberlake-Lawton Gymnasium.
AU capitalized on its trips to the free throw line, finishing a
perfect 13-for-13 from the line, led by freshman Heather Jankowy,
who went 4-for-4 en route to her team-high 12 points. Jankowy was
joined in double digits by fellow starter Jennifer Monroe,
sophomore Katie Davis and junior Jasmine Franklin who all notched
10 points apiece for the game. Davis closed the afternoon 5-for-6
from the field, as the Trojans shot 42.1 percent on the day.
With the triumph, Anderson breaks away from the Cobras in the
conference standings as both teams entered the day in a deadlock
for seventh-place. The win propels the Black and Gold to
sixth-place with two games to play and with a win on Wednesday; AU
would earn a spot into the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference
Tournament.
On the home side, Coker was paced by guard Tanesha Stenson with
24 points on 7-of-16 shooting. Stenson, who entered the game
averaging 13.8 points per game, added six rebounds and two steals
playing in every minute. Teammate Priscilla Fenty recorded a
double-double with 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, including
nine of the offensive end. With Fenty being the only player to
record double figure rebounds, the Cobras won the rebounding
battle, 43-36.
Despite winning the rebounding category, Coker managed to shoot
just 28.6 percent as Stenson and Fenty combined for 70.8 percent of
the Cobras' scoring. The 48 points is the first time this season AU
has held a team under 50 points.
Anderson started quickly as Monroe and junior guard Sierra
Simpson dropped in back-to-back field goals, followed by a
3-pointer from Jankowy to propel the visitors to a 7-0 lead to
start the game. The spurt forced Coker head coach Jenny Finora to
call a timeout in the opening three minutes, as the Black and Gold
recorded their second 7-0 run to begin a game in their last three
games.
The Trojans maintained their lead following the break,
eventually pushing out an 11-point advantage when Franklin recorded
her only two free throws of the contest, bringing the score to 15-4
with less than 11 minutes remaining in the opening period.
After a missed 3-pointer on the opposite end by Coker's Hailey
Yohn, senior sharpshooter Emily Willoughby connected on her only
trey on the game, giving AU its largest lead of the first half at
18-4.
Despite the convincing lead, the Cobra attack began their way
back into the game, going on a 13-0 run. During the run, the
Trojans went 0-for-7 from the floor with seven turnovers that
brought the score to 18-17 with less than four minutes remaining in
the half.
Anderson was able to escape the first period with the lead after
Davis broke the scoring drought with a lay-in. Following the Davis
bucket, the teams traded points in the final moments of the first
half, as AU took a 24-21 lead into the locker rooms.
"We got off to a really good start in the first half while
playing tough hard-nosed defense," Anderson head coach Jimmy
Garrity said. "We went through a tough stretch offensively and
didn't do a very good job taking care of the basketball with 11
first half turnovers."
The lead quickly vanished at the start of the second half as the
SAC newcomers evened the score at 30-30 when Stenson made one of
her three 3-pointers for the afternoon. Stenson followed the
long-range jumper with another 3-pointer, as Coker took its first
lead of the afternoon at 33-30.
The Trojans answered the Stenson scoring streak, as Monroe and
Davis knocked in back-to-back jumpers to regain the advantage AU
would eventually not give back.
Coker would even the scoreline twice following the Monroe and
Davis baskets, but was unable to go back on top. At 42-42, the
game's final deadlock, Anderson stormed to an 11-0 run, highlighted
by junior Lesley Woods' only 3-pointer of the game, as the run
would put the game out of reach. The trey moved Woods one 3-pointer
away from tying Mikala Fogle-Wilson for seventh-place in the
program's 3-pointers made list.
Following the 11-0 run, Stenson made two free throws to give
Coker its first points in five minutes, to cut the deficit to nine
points. The Trojans answered the free throws with a 3-pointer by
Jankowy and a lay-in from Franklin to give AU a 58-44 lead.
Facing the deficit, Coker began to send the Trojans to the line,
trying to conserve time, but AU took advantage of the trips to the
charity stripe, knocking down seven free throws in the final two
minutes to clinch the 65-48 conference win.
"I thought we did a great job in the second half of grinding it
out," Garrity said. "We hit a couple of jumpers that really sparked
us offensively and we did a better job taking care of the
basketball with just four turnovers. This was a good win over a
good Coker basketball team and we look forward to a huge game this
weekend with senior night and tournament seeding on the line."
Anderson returns to the Abney Athletic Center for the final time
during the regular season on Wednesday when it welcomes Tusculum.
The Trojans will recognize the team's lone senior, Emily
Willoughby, for senior night, as tip-off is set for 6 p.m.