DANVILLE, Va. — The Averett University women's basketball team got a complete team effort in a 76-73 USA South Conference win Saturday afternoon against Methodist University at the Grant Center. 
 
Saturday's conference bout came down to the wire as the Cougars were aided by a clutch offensive rebound and put back by senior Amani Ajayi with :28 seconds remaining on the clock. However, Methodist's Kaneya Chambers finished a contested layup in the lay to cut the lead back to two points at 74-72.
 
Averett (4-4, 2-1 USA South) would go 1-2 from the line on back-to-back free throw trips following Chambers basket, when senior Alixis Roccia hit a free throw to put the Cougars up 75-72, before Chambers split a pair of free throws at the line to pull back within two points at 75-73, but junior Samantha Tecson also split a pair of free throws to give Averett back a three point lead with :01 second remaining on the board to seal the victory.
 
Averett led the Monarchs 18-17 after the first quarter after trailing by four points with 4:28 remaining in the opening quarter. 
 
Methodist (2-6, 1-2 USA South) used an 8-0 run over the final 1:44 of the second quarter to take a 39-31 lead into halftime. 
 
The Monarchs would lead by as many as 10 points early into the third quarter, however Averett used a 17-1 run of their own to tie the game at 41-41 and retake the lead at 48-42 with 3:35 remaining in the third. 
 
The Cougars would hold on to take a 56-55 lead into the final quarter of play as junior Brooke Carthon connected on a layup in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter, however Chambers nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 58-58. 
 
Averett did not trail the entire fourth quarter of Saturday's game as Methodist managed three ties through the final minutes, however the Cougars connect on clutch buckets by freshman Camryn Lunsford and junior Kiara Smith. 
 
The Cougars finished Saturday's contest with 12 players leaving their mark in the scoring column as Roccia finished with a team-high 13 points, while Lunsford and Ajayi both finished with double-digit point totals. 
 
Averett will close out the opening portion of their 2018-19 schedule this coming Monday and Tuesday, December 17 and 18 as they travel to the Ferrum College Invitational for matchups with Centre College and Maryville College.