Catawba Rallies in Second Half to Defeat Mars Hill

SALISBURY, N.C.-Catawba rallied back from a 13-point deficit to defeat Mars Hill, 62-60, at Goodman Gym Wednesday night. With the victory, Catawba improves to 17-8 overall, 12-5 in SAC play. The loss dropped Mars Hill to 12-14 overall, 5-12 in the SAC.

A pair of free throws by Nisha Long with 13 seconds remaining completed the comeback for the Indians, who trailed by 10 at halftime and as many as 13 in the first half. Long and Dana Hicks each notched double-doubles for the Indians, with Long going for 21 points and 10 boards, and Hicks scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Armeka Booker recorded her third double-double of the season, scoring 17 points to go along with 15 rebounds for Mars Hill. Tyler Carlson added 16 points for the Lions.

After trailing by ten at the break, Catawba slowly chipped away at the Mars Hill lead. The Indians took their first lead of the half on three by Lauren Lewis with 11:05 to play. A three by Long pushed the lead to four, but that was the largest lead either team would enjoy the rest of the way. The Lions fought back to tie the score at 56 on a Booker free throw with 3:31 to play. Booker led a strong effort off the bench as the MHC reserves outscored their Catawba counterparts 39-8.

Carlson gave the Lions the lead, but Chloe Bully took it right back for the Indians with a three to make it 59-58 with 2:00 left. Bully scored 14 points on the night, on 5-of-11 shooting. The Indians were 7-of-16 from beyond the arc on the night.

The Lions responded with a lay-up by Booker to take a 60-59 lead with 1:23 to play, but the Indians tied the score on a free throw by Bully. That set the stage for Long, who drew a foul with 13 seconds to play and sank what proved to be the game-winning free throws. Catawba was 11-of-16 from the free throw line, while the Lions were 2-of-7 from the charity stripe.

A Taylor Deal three-point attempt was just off the mark in the closing seconds.

Mars Hill will conclude its season on Saturday, Feb. 25 when they travel to Greeneville, Tenn. for a matchup with Tusculum. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m.