No. 8 Lady Eagles To Square Off Against Lenoir-Rhyne Saturday At Holt Fieldhouse
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The eighth-ranked Carson-Newman Lady Eagles will put their 16-0 (6-0 SAC) record on the line Saturday when the Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne (12-4, 5-1 SAC) visit Mossy Creek. L-R is the defending South Atlantic Conference regular season and tournament champion. Tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m., at Carson-Newman’s Holt Fieldhouse.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The eighth-ranked
Carson-Newman Lady Eagles will put their 16-0 (6-0 SAC) record on
the line Saturday when the Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne (12-4, 5-1 SAC)
visit Mossy Creek. L-R is the defending South Atlantic Conference
regular season and tournament champion. Tipoff is set for 6:00
p.m., at Carson-Newman’s Holt Fieldhouse.
The game will be broadcast on AM 1300 out of Morristown and can
also be heard on the web by visiting cneagles.com.
“It’s game 17. Yes, it’s magnified that
we’re one game up on Lenoir-Rhyne,” said Lady
Eagle Head Coach Dean Walsh.
“They’re the (defending) conference champs and
preseason favorites; but the bottom line is, it’s game 17 and
the kids know what’s at stake. That’s how we’re
going to play it.”
Carson-Newman returns to the court after an impressive performance
that resulted in a 114-64 victory over Brevard Wednesday night on
the road. The Lady Eagles shot 55.8 percent (48-for-86) and hit a
season-high 12 three-pointers against the Tornados. Sophomore
forward Zoriah Williams (Calera, Ala.) led the way
with 17 points and nine rebounds in just 16 minutes on the
court.
C-N is first in the SAC in several categories including scoring
offense (81.1 ppg), scoring margin (+17.6 pts.), field goal
percentage (45.2%), three-point field goal defense (26.7%), assists
(16.3 apg), steals (14.8 spg), blocks (5.9 bpg) and turnover margin
(+8.06).
Junior guard Mandy Mendenhall (Kingston Springs,
Tenn.) is sixth in the league in scoring (16.2 ppg) and is first in
three-point field goal percentage (49.1%) while senior guard
Ashley Kyle (Jefferson City, Tenn.) is ninth in
scoring (14.6 ppg) and leads the conference in assists (5.2 apg)
and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.21). Senior forward Shari
Buford (Hampton, Ga.) is first in the SAC in blocks (3.0
bpg) and third in rebounding (10.4 rpg).
L-R comes into Saturday’s game after a weeklong break. The
Bears are the winners of their last two contests, defeating Mars
Hill and Lincoln Memorial at home in SAC action.
The team, led by one of the best backcourts in the region, has
eight seniors this season. Sophomore guard Cameron Sealey leads the
team in scoring with 12.8 points per game while senior guards
Brittany Mitch and Amber Holt are averaging 11.8 and 10.5 points
per outing, respectively. Senior guard Jami Safrit is also putting
up strong numbers, with 9.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists
per contest.
As a unit, the Bears are second in the SAC in free throw percentage
(73.3%) and are third in scoring offense (72.9 ppg) and field goal
percentage (43.1%).
Carson-Newman leads the all-time series with Lenoir-Rhyne, 36-16.
