Game recaps and notes from around the South Atlantic Conference:

CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles went 2-1 in the first week of the 2005-06 basketball season. Carson-Newman closed the final 6:24 of the first half on an 18-4 run erasing a six-point deficit, giving the 19th ranked Lady Eagles a 30-22 advantage at the break, as they held off USC Aiken for the 61-54 win in non-conference women’s basketball action on Tuesday night ... Tashea Ledbetter and Ashley Tipton had 13 and 11 points off the bench for Carson-Newman while Amanda Ray added 11 points and four of the team s 12 steals. Gabrielle Smith chipped in nine points and a team-high six rebounds ... Both teams showed evidence early on that it was their season opener combining for 33 first half turnovers. Carson-Newman found their range again pushing the lead into double figures 42-32 behind an 8-2 spurt. Smith’s jumper with 1:20 to play gave Carson-Newman its largest lead 58-47. The Lady Pacers finished strong with five-straight points over the next 50 seconds making it a two-possession game, 58-52, but the Lady Eagles closed out the 61-54 win ... In a contest marred by 61 total turnovers, The Carson-Newman College Lady Eagles scored a 76-66 win over the St. Andrews Presbyterian College Lady Knights in opening night action of the Eagle Club Classic inside Holt Fieldhouse. The Lady Knights committed 35 turnovers and the Lady Eagles committed 26 miscues ... St. Andrews took advantage of a slow moving contest early in the first half, taking a 10-6 lead after the first 10 minutes of play. In the next five minutes, the Lady Knights went on an 18-9 run to grab a 28-17 advantage with five minutes to play in the first half that translated into a 39-26 lead at halftime ... The Lady Eagles regrouped during the break and opened the second half with a 6-0 run before taking the lead with 11:12 to play in the contest on a 3-point bucket by Cassie Burks. Burks’ trey put the Lady Eagles on top 50-48 and the home team never trailed again ... A 17-5 run over the next six minutes left the Lady Eagles out front by 14 points entering the final three minutes ... The teams combined for 47 fouls and shot 67 free throws. The Lady Eagles were 32-41 from the charity stripe for 78 percent, while the Lady Knights shot 69 percent (18-26) from the line ... The Armstrong Atlantic State University Pirates parlayed a 16-point halftime advantage into a 72-61 win over hosting Carson-Newman College in game four of the 2005 Eagle Club Classic at Holt Fieldhouse. Amanda Ray led C-N with her first career double double. Ray fired 15 points and gathered 11 boards ... The Lady Pirates jumped out to a 32-19 lead with four minutes to play in the first half after starting the game trailing 7-2. Carson-Newman rebounded to trim the lead to one point at 39-38, but the Lady Pirates quickly rebounded to grab another double-digit lead ... A 14-0 Carson-Newman run to open the second half sent Armstrong Atlantic reeling, but five consecutive points from Jasmine Herron pushed the lead back to eight points ... Nicole Avrett gunned a pair of 3-pointers to open the half for the Lady Eagles. The senior finished with 10 points ... Herron's buckets sparked a 17-4 run that left the score at 67-51 with 4:12 to play in the contest ... Eboni Johnson and Giovanni Booker added 10 points apiece for the Lady Eagles ... The Lady Eagles will travel to Lincoln Memorial University Nov. 22 to face the Lady Railsplitters at 6:00 p.m.

CATAWBA - The Lady Indians dropped both games during their opening weekend ... Catawba dropped a 76-57 decision to Livingstone and fell 70-66 to St. Augusine’s ... Both games were played at Livingstone ... In the opener, the Lady Indians held a 34-24 lead at the break, but shot just 31 percent in the second half ... Hannah Davis led the ladies with 14 points and eight rebounds ... Freshman Brittany Higgins tossed in 12 points, while Hillary Hampton added 11 ... Catawba as out-rebounded 45-32 in the loss to St. Augustine’s, but did cut the turnovers down to 10 from 28 against Livingstone ... Four players reached double figures, led by Hampton with 11 ... Tamekia Foster, Ingrid Easter and freshman Cameron Clark each had 10 ... Foster added eight rebounds ... The Lady Indians travel to Pembroke on Tuesday then host USC-Aiken and J.C. Smith in the Catawba Classic this weekend.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College women’s basketball team (2-1), under first-year Head Coach Todd Starkey, won two of three games to start the 2005-06 season … L-R won its opener at Lander in Greenwood, S.C., on Tuesday (a 75-66 win in overtime) … Senior forward Shannon Jones (Warrenton, N.C.) led the way for the Bears with 19 points and 14 rebounds while sophomore guard Leah Barrier (Morganton, N.C.), a transfer from Western Carolina University, added 17 points and five three-pointers in first game as a Bear … Lenoir-Rhyne out-rebounded Lander, 56-34, in the coaching debut of Starkey … L-R then split its pair of contests in the Lady Blue Bear Classic in Salisbury, N.C., on the campus of Livingstone College over the weekend … On Friday, Lenoir-Rhyne fell to Saint Augustine’s by a 69-67 score before downing Livingstone on Saturday, 52-40 … Barrier scored 18 more against Saint Augustine’s but L-R could not hold a five-point lead in the second half … Jones scored 14 but Lenoir-Rhyne was hurt by a 34 percent field goal shooting for the game (23-of-67) … The Bears, however, turned up the defensive pressure against the Lady Blue Bears on Saturday, limiting Livingstone 40 points and 28 percent shooting for the game … Jones notched her second double-double in three games (13 points and 11 rebounds) while freshman forward Ashlei Helton (Rhodhiss, N.C.) also scored in double figures for the Bears, finishing with 10 points … Lenoir-Rhyne travels to Bristol, Tenn., to take on King College Wednesday at 6 p.m., before participating in the Catawba College Thanksgiving Classic this weekend in Salisbury, N.C. … L-R plays Johnson C. Smith on Friday at 6 p.m., before playing S.C.-Aiken Saturday at 2 p.m.

MARS HILL - Kristi Ferris (Knoxville, TN) and Lindsey Jones (Crossville, TN) led MHC to a 2-1 start for the 2005 campaign … Ferris scored 20 points in the Lions win over Limestone and then added 18 in MHC’s loss to Armstromg Atlantic … Jones then scored 31 in a 98-75 win over St. Andrews on Saturday. … For the week, Ferris averaged 20.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game while Jones tallied 17.3 points and seven rebounds per contest … In the first game of the week, Five Lion players scored in double figures as Mars Hill defeated Limestone College in their season opener in Stanford Arena, 101-82 … The Lions scored 42 points off of Limestone miscues … Ariel Okunowo hit a shot at the key with 11:30 remaining in the first half to give MHC an 18-17 lead and the Lions never looked back … Over the final 11 minutes of the first frame, MHC out scored Limestone 36-to-18 to take a 54-35 advantage into the locker room at halftime … The second half was all Mars Hill … The Lions led by as many as 31 points (77-46) with 13:05 left in regulation after Laura Snider (Old Fort, NC) hit a pair of free throws … MHC cruised down the stretch to win by 19 … MHC only shot 41.2 percent (35-85) from the floor but they did connect on 75.9 percent (22-29) of their free throw attempts … The Lions also forced the Saints into 29 turnovers while only committing 11 turnovers when they had the ball … Limestone won the rebound battle, 52-to-45 … Kristi Ferris led MHC with 20 points followed by Abby DeBusk (New Tazewell, TN) and Lindsey Jones who scored 17 apiece … Jones pulled down nine rebounds in the victory … Okunowo added 14 points and Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) tallied 13 points in the contest … In the second game of the week, the Armstrong Atlantic State University Lady Pirates recorded an 80-69 win over the Mars Hill in the opening round of the Eagle Club Classic at Holt Fieldhouse Friday evening … The Lions jumped out to a 13-2 lead in the first half before Armstrong Atlantic’s Ashley Mason tied the game on a lay-up with 1:47 to play in the first half … Ashley Duhart followed up with a pair of free tosses to give the Lady Pirates a 34-32 lead and AASU would not trail the rest of the contest … Armstrong Atlantic led by as much as 16 points in the second half as they connected on 17 of their 35 attempts (49 percent) from the field … The Lions trimmed the lead to within nine points in the final minute, but Jasmine Herron made a pair of late free throws to keep Armstrong Atlantic on top by double digits … Kristi Ferris led Mars Hill with 18 points, while Allison Schafer fired 13 and Abby DeBusk had 10 … In the third game of the week, Mars Hill took a 98-75 decision from St. Andrews College in game three of the 2005 Eagle Club Classic at Holt Fieldhouse Saturday afternoon … Lindsey Jones rattled off 31 points and Kristi Ferris added 23 for the Lions (2-1) in the win … Mars Hill made 29 of their 36 free throw attempts in a contest that saw 50 personal fouls … The Lions jumped out to a 14-4 lead in the first six minutes of play on their way to a 57-37 advantage at halftime … St. Andrews rebounded to cut the deficit to 12 but the Lions offense proved to be too much to handle … Mars Hill made 10 consecutive free throws in a 10-minute span in the second half … Katie Davis (Harriman, Tenn.) added 10 points for the Lions … Jones and Ferris were a combined 18-20 from the free throw line … This week, MHC will play at NCAA Division I rival High Point University on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

NEWBERRY - Newberry fell in both games at the Peach Belt/South Atlantic Conference clash held in Clinton, S.C. this weekend ... Friday night’s contest went 72-69 in favor of Lander University and Saturday’s game went to Columbus State University, 70-59 ... These two games were the first of six away from Eleazer Arena to open the season ... Newberry rallied to within one with 10 seconds remaining against Lander, but Lander guard Lashaundra Dubose was able to ice the victory for the Bearcats with four free throws down the stretch. Sophomore forward Tonique Frasier paced the Lady Indians with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and three steals on the game ... Newberry got off to a slow start in the first half, as they fell behind by as many as nine. While the Lady Indians missed some key close range shots, the Bearcats used a spark from three-point threat Bryony Crouch to maintain the lead throughout much of the half. Crouch splashed five three-pointers in the half, leading all scorers at the break with 15. Newberry, led by Frasier with six points and seven rebounds, made a late spurt to gain the edge at halftime, 31-30 ... Freshman forward Anita Bulcher came off the bench to record five points and four boards in the first half for Newberry while Monica Alexander, sophomore guard Ashlee Wright, Tonya Deese, and Chance Stewart all posted four points ... In Saturday’s game, both teams struggled early as just 13 total points were scored in the first five minutes of play. Despite shooting 34.6 percent from the field, Newberry maintained a narrow lead much of the half, until the Lady Cougars made a run of their own. Columbus State came roaring back to take a six point advantage with 7:08 with a seven point run. Laura Marquardt kept the Lady Indians close as she netted all eight of her first-half points with under seven minutes remaining. Columbus State responded, however, to take a 32-31 lead into the locker rooms ... Columbus State continued their full-court pressure in the second half, forcing 14 more Newberry turnovers. Neither team led by more than three in the first 10 minutes of the half. The Lady Indians were able to grab a 41-39 lead after a Marquardt jumper, but Columbus State took the lead right back with a Howard three. A shot from downtown by Chance Stewart gave Newberry a one-point lead at 48-47, but this would be the last time the Lady Indians held the lead. A jumper by Frasier tied the score at 53, but Columbus State reeled off a 10-0 run, widening their lead to 63-53 ... For the game, Marquardt led Newberry with 15 points. Frasier added 14 points, while Stewart and Deese chipped in seven and six, respectively. Freshman Anita Bulcher came off the bench to record nine rebounds in 14 minutes, while Deese and Frasier added eight each. Sophomore guard Ashlee Wright led Newberry is assists with five ... The Lady Indians hit the road for the next contest as they travel to USC Aiken on November 22. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

PRESBYTERIAN - Presbyterian College opened the 2005-06 season with a 3-0 mark, their best start since the 2001-02 season ... PC defeated Francis Marion University 69-61 behind 17 points from senior forward Rebecca Wessinger (Laurens, S.C.). Fellow senior, center Cameron Cook (Greensboro, N.C.) chipped in 14 points and eight boards, while sophomore guard Amy Jones (Warthen, Ga.) added 15 points, eight assists and four boards ... The Lady Blue Hose went 2-0 over the weekend as they hosted the SAC/PBC Women’s Basketball Clash ... PC defeated PBC’s preseason pick, Columbus State University 59-52 behind Wessinger’s 14 points and nine boards. Jones added 13 points, seven boards, and three steals, while Cook added 10 points and two boards on six-of-six shooting from the field ... In the final game of the SAC/PBC Clash, PC rolled past Lander University 101-67 as four players reached double figures. Cook led the way with 16 points and 11 boards while Wessinger and fellow senior Wesley Campbell (Greenville, S.C.) each added 11 points. Jones continued her solid play with 10 points, four assists, and one blocked shot ... PC is holding opponents to 60.0 ppg and .39.2% shooting from the field and 15.7 percent from three-point range this season. In addition, the Lady Blue Hose are averaging 76.3 ppg, good for a +16.3 scoring margin and our-rebounding their opponents +6.4 boards per game ... Senior Rebecca Wessinger enters the week only 10 points shy of 1,000 points in her career. She will become the 16th player in program history to reach this milestone ... Sophomore guard Amy Jones has come into her own this season. The native of Warthen, Ga., is averaging 12.7 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.7 rpg, 1.0 spg while shooting 45.5 percent from the field, 58.3 percent from three-point range, and 68.8 percent from the free throw line ... The Lady Blue Hose return to action on Wednesday, November 23 when they host their fourth Peach Belt Conference opponent, USC Upstate at 6:00 pm. PC will hit the road for the first time this season with a trip to the state of West Virginia following the Thanksgiving holiday. PC will take on Alderson-Broaddus College at 2:00 pm on Saturday, November 26 and Davis & Elkins College on Sunday, November 27 at 2:00 pm.

TUSCULUM - Tusculum won its first three games of the 2005-06 season, giving first-year head coach Missy Tiber her first victories at the helm of the Pioneer program… All three of TC’s season-opening victories came against South Atlantic Region opponents, as TC posted wins over North Greenville (77-72), Johnson C. Smith (61-49), and USC Upstate (77-69)… The last time Tusculum opened the season 3-0 was 1997… Junior Chassity Martin was named the MVP of the Ferguson Enterprises Classic after posting 15 points in the victory over Johnson C. Smith and pouring 25 points on USC Upstate. For the week, Martin averaged 16.0 points over three games and shot a solid 50 percent from the field and from three-point range… In the Pioneers’ victory over J.C. Smith, senior Amber Redding tied her career high with 13 rebounds. Redding currently leads the squad with an average of 8.0 rebounds per game…. Junior Brooke Underwood tied her career high with nine assists in the win against USC Upstate. So far, Underwood is averaging 8.0 assists per game… The Pioneers have twice scored 77 points this season, which is more points than the team scored in any of its 29 games a year ago, including three overtime contests… Freshman Stephany Neptune scored 20 of her game-high 22 points in the second half of TC’s win over J.C. Smith. She was selected to the Ferguson Enterprises All-Classic Team… Freshman Ashli Oliver twice scored double-figures last week, netting a team-high 18 points at North Greenville and 17 versus USC Upstate. She narrowly missed double-digits with nine points in the win against Johnson C. Smith… Freshman Brooke Waddell provided a tremendous boost off the bench for the Pioneers, scoring 17 points against North Greenville and 13 versus USC Upstate. In the USCU victory, Waddell shot a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor… Next on the docket for the Pioneers is a home game against Concord (Nov. 22) and a road trip to UNC Pembroke (Nov. 26).

WINGATE - Wingate University junior guard Tanetra Barrett had a big week as the Bulldogs won two out of three games to open the 2005-06 season. On Saturday night, Barrett tied her career-high with 29 points in a tough 59-57 loss to Johnson C. Smith in the Ferguson Enterprises Classic at Tusculum ... Barrett hit 13-of-18 field goals against the Golden Bulls. She also nailed two-of-four three point field goals against JCSU. On Friday night, Barrett had 16 markers in a 97-73 victory over USC Upstate on the opening night of the Ferguson Enterprises Classic at Tusculum ... On Tuesday evening, Barrett hit two free throws with nine seconds remaining to give the Bulldogs an 81-80 NCAA Division II women’s basketball victory over Claflin University in the Edward L. Tullis Arena on the Claflin campus. Barrett had 18 markers and a team-best five assists against the Pantherettes ... For the week, Barrett averaged 21.0 points per game. She hit a solid 59.5 percent of her field goals (25-of-42). On the young season, Barrett is leading Wingate in scoring. She is second on the team charts in field goal percentage (59.5 percent) and steals (2.0 steals per game) ... Against Claflin, sophomore guard Kate Edwards led the way with a career-high 23 points. The Scotland High graduate added eight rebounds. Edwards scored 15 of her 23 points in the first half as Wingate took a 41-34 lead at intermission ... Wingate came out of the gates strong at Claflin, as the visitors shot 51.7 percent (15-of-29) in the first half, including seven-of-11 (63.6 percent) from three-point land. Edwards hit five of her six triples in the opening frame ... Wingate senior forward Shannon Proffit scored a career-high 17 points to lead the Bulldogs to a 97-73 NCAA Division II women’s basketball victory over USC Upstate Friday night in the Ferguson Enterprises Classic, hosted by Tusculum College. Five Wingate players hit double figures in the USC Upstate victory.