Game recaps and notes from around the South Atlantic Conference:

CARSON-NEWMAN - The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles split their two games last week ... The Lenoir-Rhyne Bears could only muster six field goals and 18 points in the first half as the Carson-Newman Lady Eagles’ defense carried them to a 70-54 win Wednesday night in Hickory. The Lady Eagles forced L-R into 19 turnovers and the Bears were haunted by poor free throw shooting as they connected on only eight of 20 (40 percent) free throws ... Eboni Johnson led C-N with 18 points and nine rebounds ... The Lady Eagles had a poor shooting day as they lost at Presbyterian, 61-47, on Saturday. Carson-Newman was a meager 28 percent (16-57) from the field and failed to hit more than nine field goals in either half. Despite the poor shooting, the Lady Eagles only trailed 31-28 at the half. They opened the second 20 minutes of play on a 6-2 run to take the lead but PC closed the game on a 19-5 run and held Carson-Newman to only one made field goal during that stretch ... The Lady Eagles were led by Nicole Avrett who had 17 points and Giovanni Booker who had 10. Eboni Johnson had 10 rebounds for the Lady Eagles ... C-N head coach Dean Walsh is now only one win shy of his 200th career victory. He has a career record of 199-99 at Hiwassee, Maryville and Carson-Newman ... The Lady Eagles have a home game against Tusculum on Wednesday at 6 p.m. and travel to Catawba for a 2 p.m. game on Saturday.

CATAWBA - The Lady Indians dropped both league road games this past week, falling 76-48 at Newberry and 73-58 at Tusculum ... After shooting well in three home games after the break, the Lady Indians shot poorly on the road, hitting just 30 percent at Newberry and 32 percent at Tusculum ... The Lady Indians shot well in the opening half at Tusculum, connecting on 46 percent, but were forced to the three-point line in the final half where they made just 1-of-13 tries ... Catawba struggled on the boards in the loss at Newberry, getting out-rebounded 55-33 and gave up 24 offensive rebounds as Newberry had a 30-10 edge in second chance points ... Tusculum held a 48-42 edge on the boards with 18 off the offensive glass ... Hannah Davis and Tamekia Foster led the ladies at Newberry with 12 points each ... Freshman Corin Muldrow was the bright spot for Catawba this week, posting career highs with 20 points and 10 rebounds against Tusculum ... She also added four assists ... Davis added 17 and six rebounds ... Catawba is even with the opposition in shooting, hitting on 38 percent, but are nearly a minus-five in rebounding and have surrendered and average of 17 offensive rebounds per game ... Davis leads Catawba in scoring at 14.2 per contest, while Foster adds 10.5 points and 7.8 rebounds ... Catawba returns home his week to face Mars Hill on Wednesday and Carson-Newman on Saturday ... Wednesday’s game is a Time Warner Cable tape delay TV broadcast.

LENOIR-RHYNE - The Lenoir-Rhyne College women’s basketball team (7-8, 0-2) lost its lone game of the week last Wednesday, 70-54 to Carson-Newman in a South Atlantic Conference contest at Shuford Gymnasium ... Once again, the Bears were plagued by poor shooting, finishing just 32 percent (20-of-63) from the field including 20 percent in the first half (six-of-30) as the Lady Eagles built a 29-18 lead going into break … Lenoir-Rhyne stayed within distance through most of the second half but a 7-0 run by Carson-Newman gave the Lady Eagles their biggest lead of the game, at 57-40 with 3:38 remaining, and the visitors coasted in with the victory … Eboni Johnson led Carson-Newman with 18 points while senior forward Shannon Jones (Warrenton, N.C.), despite the loss, picked up her fifth double-double of the year with 13 points and a career-high 21 rebounds … Freshman forward Ashlei Helton (Icard, N.C.) also scored in double figures for the Bears, finishing with a season-high 11 points … Jones leads the league in rebounding at 12.3 rebounds per game … Lenoir-Rhyne fell below .500 for the first time this year and are looking to avoid its first 0-3 start in conference play since the 1993-94 season ... L-R will play three SAC contests this week beginning with a trip to Mars Hill, N.C., to take Mars Hill College Monday at 6 p.m. … The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, January 14, but was postponed due to snow and ice … The two other league contests this week are at home (Wednesday at 6 p.m., versus Wingate and Saturday at 6 p.m., against Presbyterian).

MARS HILL - MHC played only one game last week … The Lions game against Lenoir-Rhyne College on Saturday was postponed to Monday night due to snow … Earlier in the week MHC lost to Tusculum College … The Lions are 10-5 overall and 0-2 in the SAC … Against the Pioneers, Ashli Oliver (Kokomo, IN) hit seven 3-pointers to propel Tusculum College past Mars Hill in women’s basketball action Wednesday night in Stanford Arena, 83-68 … Oliver hit her first 3-pointer with 18:25 on the clock to give the Pioneers a 3-0 advantage and the Pioneers would lead the rest of the way … TC led by as many as 15 points (40-25) in the first frame after Amber Redding (Sevierville, TN) hit a shot from behind the arc … The Pioneers took a 44-31 lead into the locker room at halftime … TC out scored the Lions 14-to-3 to start the second half and take a 58-34 lead with 14:48 on the clock after Lauren Wrightson (Germantown, MD) hit a layup … The Pioneer’s biggest lead was 29 points (79-50) at the 6:38 mark after Stephany Neptune (Wallkill, NY) hit a shot in the lane … Tusculum scored 24 points off MHC miscues and scored 10 off the break … Oliver led all scorers tallying her career high 26 points in the contest … Tonight’s win in Stanford Arena was the Pioneer’s first since 1997 … Following Oliver was Redding with 19 and Chassity Martin (Salem, VA) with 17 … Four Lion players scored in double-digits in the contest … Lindsey Jones (Crossville, TN) scored 14 points to lead the Lions followed by Kristi Ferris (Knoxville, TN) who scored 12 points … Allison Schafer (Advance, NC) and Abby DeBusk (New Tazewell, TN) scored 10 points apiece … MHC will host Lenoir-Rhyne College on Monday night at 6 p.m. and then play at Catawba College on Wednesday night before hosting Wingate University in Stanford Arena on Saturday afternoon.

NEWBERRY - Newberry picked up its first South Atlantic Conference victory Wednesday night, 76-48, over Catawba. It is Newberry’s first regular season win over Catawba in 20 games. The last regular season win over Catawba came in 1988 ... Following a 31-26 halftime lead, the Lady Indians never looked back in the second stanza as they continued to add to their lead by forcing Catawba into bad shots ... The Lady Indians led by as many as 30 and held Catawba to just 22 second half points. Monica Alexander and Tonique Frasier paced the team with 14 apiece, and Ashlee Wright added 12. Frasier also grabbed a game-high 12 boards ... Saturday’s contest saw almost an identical score but a different winner. Wingate streaked to an early lead and never looked back as the Lady Indians were not able to challenge the Bulldogs behind anemic shooting and a Wingate domination of the boards. Newberry was led by Tonique Frasier with 15 points while Ashlee Wright added another 14 for Newberry while Tanetra Barrett led Wingate with 20 points ... Wingate outrebounded Newberry 47-31, dominating the defensive boards 34-17 while Newberry was unable to put together a serious offensive threat behind 26 percent shooting from the floor. Newberry struggled from the line, shooting 56 percent while Wingate went 16-for-17 from the stripe, knocking down 94 percent of their free throws ... Wingate, who was picked in the preseason to win the conference, held a 48-22 halftime lead behind 16 of Barrett’s 20 points in the game. Wright posted nine points through the halfway mark while Frasier put down seven.

PRESBYTERIAN - Presbyterian College improved to 13-3 overall and 2-1 in the South Atlantic Conference splitting a pair of games this past week. The Lady Blue Hose lost 80-66 to Wingate University on the road this past Wednesday, but bounced back for a 61-47 victory at home over Carson-Newman College on Saturday ... Presbyterian College struggled to shoot 35.7 percent from the field including 29.7 percent in the second half and committed 19 turnovers in their 80-66 loss to Wingate University on Wednesday night. PC dominated the backboards (51-33), but shot only 14-of-25 from the charity stripe. Senior forward Rebecca Wessinger (Laurens, S.C.) led the way with 19 points and five boards, while freshman center Sharie Hopkins (Chesapeake, Va.) added 15 points and 13 rebounds. Fellow freshman forward Morgan Johnson (Marietta, Ga.) came off the bench to add 12 points and 15 rebounds. The freshman duo combined for 17 offensive rebounds, seven more than Wingate’s entire team (10) ... Presbyterian College held the Carson-Newman College Eagles to their lowest point total of the season and only 28.1 percent from the field in their 61-47 victory. PC assisted on 17 of 22 made field goals and won the battle of the backboards 49-43 in the win. Sophomore guard Amy Jones (Warthen, Ga.) led the way with 17 points, seven assists, and six boards, while the freshman duo of Sharie Hopkins (15 pts, 9 rbs, 3 stls) and Morgan Johnson (15 pts, 11 rbs, 2 blks) continued their stellar play. The Eagles were held to 19 second half points and only two made field goals in the final 10 minutes of the game ... Defensively, PC is allowing only 62.2 ppg and hold a +10.7 rebound advantage this season. When PC holds its opponents to under 67 points, they are 11-1 this season. PC on offense has six players averaging atleast 7.0 ppg and eight players are averaging at least 15 minutes per game ... Sophomore guard Amy Jones has come into her own this season. The native of Warthen, Ga., is averaging 10.1 ppg, 4.1 apg, 4.6 rpg, 1.6 spg while shooting 38.3 percent from the field, 35.3 percent from three-point range, and 76.7 percent from the free throw line. She ranks in six different statistical categories in the latest South Atlantic Conference statistics ... Freshman center Sharie Hopkins is becoming an impact player for the Lady Blue Hose this season. Hopkins is averaging 11.2 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 1.1 spg, while shooting 62.5 percent from the floor. This past week, Hopkins averaged 15.0 ppg, 12.0 rpg, 2.0 bpg, 2.0 spg, while shooting 50 percent from the field ... Freshman forward Morgan Johnson has moved into the starting lineup with her continued solid play this season. Johnson is averaging 5.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 0.6 bpg, 0.8 spg, and shooting 60 percent from the field and 64.7 percent from the line. This past week, she averaged 13.5 ppg, 13.0 rpg, 1.5 bpg, 1.5 spg, while shooting 55.5 percent from the field and 70 percent from the line. In her first collegiate start versus the Eagles, Johnson tallied 15 points, 11 rebounds, two blocks, and one steal while hitting six-of-nine field goals ... Wessinger leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg), and is fifth in rebounds (5.1 rpg) while shooting 45.2 percent from the field, 36 percent from beyond the arc, and 73.6 percent from the line. She currently has 1,192 career points which ranks 12th in program history. She recently passed former All-SAC standout Karen Neely (1993-97) for 12th place. She needs 22 points to pass former All-SAC standout, Chris Mitchum (1992-96) for 11th place with 1,213 career points ... Senior center Cameron Cook continues her move up the program’s career rebounding chart. Cook, a native of Greensboro, N.C., currently ranks 11th in program history with 533 career rebounds. She passed former PC standout, Mary Byrd (1980-84) for 11th place. She needs 23 more rebounds to move into 10th place and pass Adrienne Singleton (1982-85) who tallied 555 career boards ... PC hosts the Lady Indians of Newberry College on Wednesday, January 18 at 6:00 pm before heading to Hickory, N.C. on Saturday, January 21 for a 6:00 pm tip-off against Lenoir-Rhyne College.

TUSCULUM - The Pioneers posted a 2-0 record in SAC play last week, claiming an 83-68 win at Mars Hill on Wednesday and a 73-58 victory over Catawba on Saturday… The win at Mars Hill was the first conference victory for head coach Missy Tiber, who has guided TC to an 11-3 mark thus far… Tusculum led by as many as 29 points in the second half of the contest at MHC en route to posting its first victory at Stanford Arena since Jan. 27, 1997… In the victory over the Lions, freshman Ashli Oliver set a new TC record with seven three-point field goals. She finished the game with a season-high 26 points, including 7-for-16 shooting beyond the arc, and five rebounds… As a team, TC sank 14 three-point field goals in the win, just one shy of the team single-game record set earlier this season in a victory over USC Upstate… Joining Oliver in double-figure scoring in the win at MHC were Amber Redding (19) and Chassity Martin (17)… Martin also had a career-high four steals against the Lions… Brooke Underwood chipped in a solid stat line at MHC, recording nine points, a career-high eight rebounds, seven assists, and two steals… In Saturday’s win against Catawba, Martin tied her career-high with 25 points and pulled down a career-best seven rebounds… Oliver again hit for double-digits, scoring 16 points in the win… Stephany Neptune narrowly missed a double-double, posting 10 points and nine rebounds… Underwood tallied eight points, 12 assists, six rebounds, and two steals… Redding hauled in a game-high 11 rebounds… In last week’s games combined, Neptune averaged 9.0 points and 9.0 rebounds while shooting 50 percent (8-of-16) from the field… The Pioneers out-rebounded the Lady Indians 48-42, marking just the fifth time in 14 games that TC has out-boarded its opponent… Currently averaging 9.2 assists per game, Underwood ranked second in NCAA Division II in assists in last week’s statistical report released by the Association… Oliver ranked sixth in DII with an average of 3.3 three-point field goals per game and 17th in three point accuracy (44.9 percent)… Martin was also listed among the DII stat leaders, weighing in at No. 25 with an average of 2.8 treys per game and 50th with a 39.8 three-point percentage… Tusculum continues to be among the nation’s most dangerous three-point shooting teams, ranking second in DII with an average of 9.6 treys per game… The Pioneers’ 40.4 percent three-point accuracy (as of last week’s report) ranked fourth in the country… The 2005-06 squad has already amassed 137 three-point field goals, which ranks fifth on TC’s team single-season charts. Currently hitting threes at a clip of 9.8 per contest, the Pioneers are on pace to shatter the school’s single-season team record of 171 three-point field goals... Tusculum will take to the roadways for this week’s SAC games, traveling to Carson-Newman on Wednesday and Newberry on Saturday.

WINGATE - The Wingate University women’s basketball team picked up two big SAC home wins last week to gain sole possession of first place in the league standings. Wingate is 11-4 overall and 3-0 in the SAC) entering this week’s play ... On Saturday, Wingate defeated Newberry 76-49. Bulldog junior guard Tanetra Barrett contributed 20 points and six rebounds in the victory. The win was not a one-woman show; the Bulldogs had 11 players enter the scoring column Saturday ... Senior center Veronica Taylor and junior forward Emily Paffrath recorded seven rebounds each against Newberry. The SAC leader in blocked shots per game, Paffrath had a season-high five blocks in Saturday evening’s contest. Freshman guard Anna Atkinson (Marion, N.C.) equaled her career-high with nine assists for the hosts ... On Wednesday, the Bulldogs topped Presbyterian 80-66. Barrett had 26 points to lead the way for the hosts. Paffrath contributed 18 points and four blocked shots off the bench for Wingate ... For the week, Barrett averaged 23.0 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game and 3.0 assists per game. She hit 50 percent of her field goal tries (19-of-38). Barrett is one of seven Bulldogs to lead the team in scoring on at least one occasion this season ... On the season, she is averaging 19.5 points per game and shooting 58.1 percent (115-of-198) from the floor. She leads the SAC in scoring and steals (2.0 steals per game). Barrett is second on the SAC charts in individual field goal percentage ... Wingate is 4-0 at home this season. Cuddy Arena has been kind to the Bulldogs over the years. In 2005-06, Wingate’s average victory margin in the friendly confines of Cuddy Arena is 27.8 points ... Barrett is one of three Bulldogs to chart on the NCAA Division II statistical rankings. She is listed in field goal percentage (58.1) and points per game (19.5). Atkinson is listed in assists per game (5.53) and free throw percentage (83.0), while Paffrath takes a spot in blocked shots per game (2.27).