Mendenhall, Lady Eagles knock off Lincoln Memorial in overtime, 97-91

HARROGATE, Tenn. — Senior guard Mandy Mendenhall (Kingston Springs, Tenn.) poured in seven of her team-high 19 points in overtime to lead the Carson-Newman women's basketball team to a 97-91 victory at Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday night in South Atlantic Conference action at Tex Turner Arena.

C-N outscored the Railsplitters 14-8 in the extra session to secure the win and improve to 12-15 on the season and 8-9 in the conference. The Railsplitters drop to 9-16 overall and 4-13 in SAC play.

C-N was able to overcome 25 turnovers by shooting 53.2 percent (33-of-62) from the floor and making 25-of-33 attempts from the free throw line. Lincoln Memorial shot 48.6 percent (36-of-74) on the night. The Lady Eagles also held a 42-31 advantage on the boards.

Mendenhall's 19 points paced five Lady Eagles in double figures. Freshman Shannon Depew (Newport, Tenn.) tossed in 18 points and tied her career-high with 14 rebounds, while Zoriah Williams (Calera, Ala.) added 16 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Katlin Moore (Fort Mill, S.C.) also had 16 points, and Rechelle Dye (Greeneville, Tenn.) netted a career-high 15 points, including an 11-of-13 effort from the charity stripe.

Dayshalee Salaman fired in a game-high 33 points on 10-of-15 shooting to lead the Railsplitters. Whitney Holmes poured in 20 points, while Patrice Talley and Kendra Holmes finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively, in the loss.

Lincoln Memorial held a 33-27 lead with 4:55 left in the first half, but a layup by Depew sparked a 16-2 C-N run to close out the half that gave the Lady Eagles a 43-35 lead heading into the locker room.

C-N held a 50-43 lead at the 15:26 mark of the second half after a 3-pointer by Moore. However, the Railsplitters scrapped back with a 10-3 run capped off by a fastbreak layup by Kendra Holmes to tie the game at 53-53 with 13:31 remaining.

The Lady Eagles quickly pushed their lead back to seven points with a 9-2 scoring spurt during the next two minutes, but the teams battled through seven ties and nine lead changes before Dye was fouled with one second remaining and the Lady Eagles trailing 83-81. The freshman stepped up to the line and knocked down both free throws to send the game into overtime.

In the extra period, Dye converted a 3-point play at the 3:52 mark to give C-N the lead for good at 88-85.

The Lady Eagles close out the regular season on Saturday at home against Anderson. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. at Holt Fieldhouse. Mendenhall, Moore and Amber Blackwell (Duluth, Ga.) will be honored with a Senior Day ceremony in between the women's and men's games.