DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University women's basketball pulled out an 88-81 victory over Pfeiffer University by holding off the Falcons in the final minutes Sunday at the Grant Center. The win gave the surging Cougars their fifth in a row and their 10th victory in their last 12 contests.
 
Averett (13-7) withstood several pushed by Pfeffer (13-3), including in the fourth quarter when the Falcons briefly took a 77-76 advantage with 2:50 to play. The resilient Cougars didn't waver. Senior Samm Chandler drained a big 3-pointer to break a 79-79 tie with 1:35 to play.

After getting some key stops, Averett sophomore Zenise Chambers knocked down a pair of crucial free throws with 32.7 seconds remaining to extend the Cougars' lead to 84-79. Following another defensive stop, junior Alixis Roccia also made two foul shots to make it 86-79 with 24 seconds left.

Pfeiffer hit a jumper to get back within five with 17.2 seconds remaining, but the Cougars closed the door on the Falcons with two more Chandler free throws.

Chandler finished with a team-high 22 points and sophomore Brooke Carthon had 21 points and nine rebounds to lead Averett offensively. Junior Amani Ajayi added 15 points and seven boards and Roccia had 14 points, while sophomore Ravyn Johnson led the team with 10 rebounds. Chambers chipped in with a career-best seven points in reserve.

Averett shot a season-high 53.8 percent from the floor and also outrebounded Pfeiffer 43-34.

After a tight first quarter in which neither team had more than a two-possession lead, Averett used an 8-0 run toward the end of the second quarter to jump ahead 36-26 with 1:52 left in the half. The Cougars outrebounded Pfeiffer 22-15 in the first half en route to a 41-32 advantage at the break.

???????Averett's lead grew to 12 twice in the third quarter as the Cougars took a 66-56 lead into the final period. Pfeiffer, which is transitioning from NCAA Division II to Division III, made a 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter to tie it at 68-68. Averett fought off Pfeiffer for several minutes until the Falcons took a one-point lead on Brina Bentley's layup with 2:50 to play — Pfeiffer's only lead of the second half.

???????Averett plays again on Tuesday when the Cougars host Mary Baldwin University at 5:30 p.m. in the Grant Center. The contest is a rescheduled game from when the original play date was postponed twice because of snow earlier in the month.