DANVILLE, Va. – Despite one of the best first quarters that Averett University women's basketball has had this season, it was ultimately erased as visitors Shenandoah University rallied to defeat the Cougars, 83-59 on Saturday afternoon.
Channeling her inner sharpshooter,
Emma Jones began the game flawlessly for Averett, already matching her season high in 3-pointrers made with three in the first few minutes. Teammate
Zariia America joined the party, adding another deep shot to open up a 12-2 lead versus Shenandoah.
Feeding the hot hands, the Cougars matched the Hornets shot for shot, even though the away side began to knock down a slew of baskets of their own. Leading 19-10 with under five minutes to go in the quarter, the visitors quickly turned their fortunes around, with Emily Williams leading the way on a 13-2 run. Switching quarters, Shenandoah held a slim 23-21 advantage.
Fans at the Grant Center were treated to an all-star like shootout through a large portion of the second period, when both squads knocked down six total 3-pointers, half of which came from a reasonable distance away from the net. Leads kept changing back and forth, with neither team leading by more than two.
After Jones knocked down her fifth 3-ball of the game, already breaking her career high dawning a Cougar uniform, the Hornets ended the period on a 8-2 run, forcing multiple Averett turnovers in their favor. After the halftime buzzer went, the visitors led the Cougars, 48-43.
Jones' 17 points led all scorers at the break.
DaiShaundria Giggetts and America joined Jones in double digit figures with 12 and 10, respectively.
The second half came around with defensive changes from the visitors, and succeeded. The Hornets held Averett to a single field goal in the third quarter, a three-pointer made by
Ny'Kerasia Coleman. On the other hand, Shenandoah's offense dialed in, scoring 19 points alone to amass a 67-46 lead heading into the last 10 minutes.
The Cougars could not overcome the built deficit over previous periods, although the team battled with the Hornets to only be outscored, 16-13 during this frame. The Hornets' offensive prowess ultimately was the decider, and prevailed over Averett 83-59.
Jones' career high of 17 points led all Cougars, to go along with shooting at a 50-percent clip from 3-point range (5-10). Giggetts was right behind with 15 points, and led all players with six steals, in her continued race for Freshman of the Year in the ODAC.
Averett set a new season-high in both 3-pointers made and 3-point percentage, making 10-18 at a .556 clip.
The Cougars take the short trip down south to Greensboro, North Carolina, taking on Guilford College in another ODAC matchup on Wednesday, Feb. 12. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
