DANVILLE, Va. – The Averett University women's basketball team fell short 83-71 to Emory & Henry College on Thursday night in a non-conference matchup at the Grant Center.
 
After Averett (11-10) moved out front in the first quarter, Emory & Henry (16-6) used a 9-0 run in less than two minutes to eventually put up 29 points in the second quarter. The Wasps took a 44-30 lead over Averett at halftime, but junior Ariana Covington knocked down a 3-pointer to start off the second half and spark a comeback effort for the Cougars. She went 6-for-9 from the field to finish with a career-high of 19 points.
 
Later on, the Cougars hit free throws to tighten the gap to nine points by the end of the third quarter. Averett hit three triples, with freshman guard Shannon Longworth nailing a shot from behind the arc to put the Cougars within four points (65-61) with 7:31 left in regulation. With less than five minutes remaining, sophomore shooting guard Samm Chandler stole the ball from Emory & Henry's Chloe Harris. The sequence ended in a layup for Covington, and the Cougars found themselves only trailing 67-65. Covington scored Averett's next four points, and her squad was still down by two with 2:22 to go.
 
Emory & Henry, not in a hurry to score and looking to run down the clock, took its time to find a good shot, and Anna Green drilled a 3-pointer to give the Wasps a 76-71 lead that helped Emory & Henry pull out the win.
 
Alongside Covington, four other Cougars put up double-digits. Longworth shot 4-for-6 from three-point land to register a season-high of 12 points while Chandler and sophomore guard Joelle Deese added 11 points apiece. Chandler also dished out six assists to tie her career-high, and senior forward Oneka Jones finished the night with 10 points and seven rebounds.  
 
The Wasps' Taylor Blevins clinched a double-double of 14 points and 14 rebounds.
 
Averett continues conference play on Saturday, Feb. 13, against Greensboro College at 2 p.m.