Women’s Basketball falls at Anderson, 73-68

ANDERSON, S.C. - Using a season-high 11 treys, Anderson defeated Mars Hill, 73-68, in South Atlantic Conference play Saturday afternoon at the Abney Athletic Center.

Anderson (4-3, 2-0 SAC) won its third straight, while Mars Hill (3-4, 0-2 SAC) dropped its second straight contest.

Back-to-back 3-pointers, the second coming from junior forward Tilde Ahlin deep in the right corner, gave the Trojans their first lead of the game, at 8-7, before Mars Hill responded with a 14-3 run over the next five minutes to gain a double-digit lead. A Taylor Deal layup made the score 21-11.

Junior Breonda Shannon snapped the outburst with a short jumper and guard Emily Willoughby connected on back-to-back 3-pointers for six of her team-high 16 points, pulling the Trojans within 23-19 midway through the first half.

AU continued to chip away, eventually tying the contest on Ahlin's second trey of the game, with exactly one minute remaining before halftime, but Mars Hill responded by scoring the final five points to claim a 42-37 halftime advantage.

Ahlin's basket with 16:39 on the clock gave Anderson its first lead since the early moments of the game. Later in the game, Mars Hill countered with a 10-3 run to briefly regain a one-point edge.

Guard Alissa Diaz drained her lone trey of the night from the left wing to give AU a lead it would not relinquish, at 63-62, with 4:36 on the clock and the Trojans were a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line inside the final two minutes to hold off the Lions.

Willoughby led the Trojans with a season-high 16 points, while junior guard Amanda Parris added a season-high 14 points. Shannon chipped in 10 points and shared team-high rebounding honors, with seven. Ahlin and freshman guard Sierra Simpson also collected seven rebounds apiece.

Deal posted a game-high 20 points for the Lions, while Danielle Tucker scored 16 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. Jackie Simon had 10 points. Tyler Carlson added eight.

Mars Hill will travel to King on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.