Women's Basketball Loses to No. 12 Limestone

MARS HILL, N.C. – The Lions lost to no. 12 Limestone 62-55 in women's basketball action Saturday afternoon in Stanford Arena. Mars Hill fell to 1-3 overall while the Saints improved to 3-0 on the season.

Cadence Wilmoth led the Lions with 21 points and three rebounds. Ansley Ricker added nine points and four rebounds while Genice Lane dominated the boards with a game high 12 rebounds. She added five points. One factor that led to Mars Hill's loss was that they recorded 25 turnovers in the contest that led directly to 22 points for the Saints. The Lions controlled the boards as a team, 46-33.

Jasmine Kearse led the Saints with 19 points while Maurissa Lester added 15 points and five rebounds. Imani Atkinson rounded out the double digit scorers for Limestone with 10 points. The contest saw five ties and two lead changes.

Mars Hill led by four points on two occasions in the first quarter before Kearse hit a 3-pointer to end the first frame and knot the contest at 14-all. The Saints then went on a 20-11 run in the second quarter to enjoy a 34-25 lead at the intermission.

Limestone extended their lead to 15 points (29-44), their largest of the contest, at the six minute mark of the third quarter after Lester hit a shot from behind the arc. The Lions battled back outscoring the Saints 18-4 over the next five minutes to trim the deficit to a single point (47-48) with 42 seconds left in the third stanza. A layup by Atkinson ended the third quarter with Limestone leading, 50-47.

Limestone extended their lead to as many as 11 points (60-49) with 4:54 left in regulation after Lester hit another long range jumper. Mars Hill cut Limestone's lead to five points (60-55) with 1:32 left in the game after Paige Chavis hit a foul shot. That was as close as MHU would get down the stretch.

Mars Hill will open South Atlantic Conference play at Anderson on Tuesday, November 24. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.