No. 20 Carson-Newman Upset at Catawba, 66-64

SALISBURY, S.C. — The 20th-ranked Carson-Newman women’s basketball team rallied from seven points down in the final two minutes to tie the game at Catawba, but the Lady Eagles’ comeback came up short as they fell 66-64 to the Indians on Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action at Goodman Gymnasium.

With the loss, C-N falls to 21-5 overall and 10-5 in the conference, while Catawba improves to 15-11 on the season and 8-7 in SAC play.

C-N rallied from seven down in the final two minutes, but after Mandy Mendenhall (Kingston Springs, Tenn.) tied the game with 18 seconds left, Catawba pushed the ball up the court and got a layup from Maggie Sullivan (Fort Mill, S.C.) with seven seconds remaining. Mendenhall then missed a 10-footer from the baseline as time expired in an attempt to send the game to overtime.

Catawba never trailed and got out to an 11-2 lead early. Senior guard Brooke Whitley (New London, N.C.) stroked in a trio of three-pointers in the first half, helping the Lady Indians go 6-of-11 from behind the arc in the opening frame. Catawba led 33-27 at the break.

A three-point play by Dana Hicks (York, S.C.) and a layup by Nisha Long (Dallas, N.C.) gave Catawba a 62-51 lead with 5:19 to go, but C-N began to chip away from there. Six straight points, capped by a pair of free throws by Ashley Kyle (Jefferson City, Tenn.), brought the Lady Eagles within 62-57 with 3:55 to go.

Whitley got a layup for Catawba with 3:30 remaining, but the Lady Indians had three turnovers down the stretch to give C-N a chance. Kyle hit a free throw with 53 seconds to go to cut the margin to 64-60, and then after a turnover Kyle hit a jumper with 30 seconds left to trim the deficit to 64-62. C-N forced a five-second call with 22 seconds to play to set up Mendenhall’s tying basket and the final sequence.

Mendenhall led all scorers with 18 points, while Kyle netted 13 points in the loss. Senior forward Shari Buford (Hampton, Ga.) added six points and 12 rebounds.

Whitley paced Catawba with 17 points, while Hick tallied 15 points and eight rebounds. Milica Ivanovic pitched in 13 points in the win.

The Lady Eagles will close out regular season play on Saturday at Wingate. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at Cuddy Arena in Wingate, N.C.