EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Women's Basketball Team (7-6, 2-3 SAC) earned its second South Atlantic Conference victory of the year on Wednesday afternoon, defeating Tusculum University (3-8, 1-4 SAC) by a 93-82 margin. Sophomore forward Breanna Yarber (Meadowview, Va.) provided the offensive spark for the Wasps, breaking the school record for points in a game with 38.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Emory & Henry 93, Tusculum 82
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Bob Johnson Court at the John Rutledge King Center
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (7-6, 2-3 SAC); Tusculum (3-8, 1-4 SAC)
How It Happened
- With E&H ahead 3-2 just 63 seconds into the contest, Yarber put the team on her back, scoring 18 of the Wasps' next 19 points for a 22-13 advantage at the end of the first period.
- A 9-2 run by the Pioneers to start the second closed the gap to 24-22 with 9:01 on the clock. The teams kept it close before an 11-2 run by Emory & Henry gave it a 43-34 advantage with 1:20 to go before the break. TU closed with seven of the final nine points for a 45-41 halftime score.
- Early in the third, the squads went shot-for-shot before the Wasps put up a 9-2 run to lead, 62-53 with 4:28 to go. Tusculum whittled away at the deficit for the remainder of the quarter making it a four-point game (68-64) with 10 minutes left to play.
- Emory & Henry scored the first basket of the fourth period but seven in a row by the Pioneers gave them their first lead of the contest at 72-71, forcing a timeout. The Wasps retook the lead on the next possession scoring 11 in a row for the first double-digit lead of the contest at 82-72 (4:10). From there, TU would get no closer than eight the rest of the way. Yarber put the exclamation point on the contest with her 38th point with 16 seconds remaining for the 93-82 victory.
Emory & Henry Leaders
- Yarber's 38 points came on 17 made baskets as she added seven steals, five rebounds and three assists. She eclipsed the previous program mark set by Kelly Smith on February 3, 2001, who scored 36 points at Bridgewater College.
- Junior guard Hannah Spainhour (King, N.C.) had 18 points, five assists and four rebounds while junior forward Emma Santoro (King, N.C.) tacked on 12 points, eight boards and seven assists.
- Freshman forward Gracyn Hall (Randleman, N.C.) went for seven points and 13 rebounds while junior guard Mimi Traynham (Richmond, Va.) and freshman guard Rhyan Harris (Salem, Va.) posted eight points apiece.
Tusculum Individual Leaders
- Faith Silva led the Pioneers with 21 points on 7-for-12 shooting from long range, chipping in four rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
- Ni'Kiah Chesterfield posted 16 points, eight rebounds and two blocks while Carleigh Wilson and Monique Shim each contributed 10 points.
A Deeper Look
- Emory & Henry went 33-for-74 (44.6%) for the game with six three-pointers. The Wasps shot 87.5 percent (21-of-24) from the free throw line.
- Tusculum made 42.9 percent (30-of-70) of its attempts from the floor with a dozen triples. The Pioneers were a perfect 12-for-12 at the stripe.
- The two teams tied with 41 rebounds each but it was E&H that held a 20-17 edge on second-chance points.
- The Wasps also dominated down low, scoring 44 points in the paint and also added 27 points off 22 Pioneer turnovers.
Up Next
- Emory & Henry concludes its three-game homestand on Saturday, hosting No. 4 Catawba College in a South Atlantic Conference matchup at 4:00 p.m. The contest will be the second half of a doubleheader with the Wasps' and Catawba Indians' men's teams.
---E&H---