ANDERSON, S.C. – Paced by freshman Rose Gravel's career high 28 points, Anderson University women's basketball (17-9, 13-7 SAC) won its fifth straight contest defeating South Atlantic Conference opponent Mars Hill (14-11, 11-10 SAC), 84-76, on Saturday afternoon at the Abney Athletic Center.

Today's game was designated as the annual Play4Kay event.  The Trojans and the Anderson community once again poured out its generosity and support for a worthy cause.

"What a great day for a great cause," emphasized head coach Jonathon Barbaree. "I just want to say thank you to everyone who came and supported our annual Play4Kay game."

"Great to get a win at home on a special night," noted Barbaree. "We did not do our job on the glass in the first half and left too many free throws out there. The second half we cleaned up the glass a little better and made some big baskets when needed."

"Diamond was our steady anchor all night grabbing the defensive rebounds and hitting two big 3's while finishing with another double- double," said Barbaree. "It was great to see Rose have a big game in only her second game back. She's really worked on her shot and that was evident today. Zamiya's last seven points were exactly when we needed them."

"Next game is Wednesday and we need everyone there for both our game and the men's game!," added Barbaree.

Anderson built a 11-point lead after one period of play maintaining a double-digit cushion for half of the second quarter before heading into the half with an eight-point advantage.

The Lions cut the lead to two-points with 4:52 remaining in the third stanza. The Black and Gold responded pushing its lead back to seven points heading in the final 10 minutes of action. AU held off The Lions avenging an earlier loss to Mars Hill in late November.

Gravel recorded her seventh double-double of the season pairing 11 rebounds with her 28-point total. Senior Diamond McDowell continued her double-double streak recording her 13^th of the season and fifth in a row. McDowell netted 23 points and ripped down 12 rebounds. Senior Zaymia Passmore closed out the double-digit scoring for the Trojans with 16 points. Passmore dished out seven assists while being credited with three steals.

Mars Hill had two 20-point scorers with Aalyiah El dropping in a team-high 24 points with Tateyoina Harris scoring 22 points and hauling in a game-high 17 rebounds on the afternoon.
The Trojans are currently tied for fourth in the league standings with four regular season games to play.

The Black and Gold remain at home on Wednesday to host SAC foe Wingate. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 pm.