Lions' Season Ends in Conference Quaterfinals

MARS HILL, N.C. – The Mars Hill women's basketball team came to a heartbreaking end on Wednesday, March 02 as it fell to Lincoln Memorial in the South Atlantic Conference Women's Hoops Championship Quarterfinals. The Railsplitters were able to down the Lions 75-72.

Ansley Ricker finished off a stellar career for the Lions as she poured in a game-high 23 points, including 11-11 from the charity stripe. Cadence Wilmoth posted 17 points in her finale as a Lion while Genice Lane flirted with a double-double, chipping in 12 points and nine rebounds. Kelsey Espinosa added 11 points and eight boards.

The Blue and Gold could not overcome a cold shooting night, hitting 23 of 59 shots for only 39%. The Lions won the battle of the boards 35-31 and held a slim 30-28 advantage in points in the paint.

The always-competitive four versus five seed had the makings to be a classic in the beginning with the two teams exchanging the initial 34 points. With the score knotted at 17-all, Espinosa hit a beautiful driving layup and the Lions' defense turned up the energy to the tune of a quick 5-0 spurt to gain a slight cushion at 22-17 with less than a minute to play in the first. Mars Hill carried a 24-19 lead into the second.

A 14-2 run to start the second frame gave the Railsplitters a 33-26 lead, following a deep three at the six-minute mark. However, just as they have done all year, the Lions showed resiliency and scored nine of the next 11 points to deadlock the scoreboard at 35-35 heading into the half. Both squads shot 13-29 from the field in the first half for a 44.8% clip. The Lions dominated the boards in the first 20 minutes, outrebounding LMU 20-14.

The start of the second half mirrored the first with neither team being able to separate from the other. Scoring was hard to come by as both defenses locked down. LMU held a slight 42-41 lead with 3:43 remaining in the third. The Railsplitters gained a small amount of momentum at the conclusion of the third, scoring the last four points and carrying a 49-45 lead heading into the final stanza.

Lincoln Memorial built its biggest lead at 53-45 after an offensive put back, but the Lions' first three of the game, from the hands of Ricker, cut the deficit to just five with eight to play in regulation. The intensity of the game picked up from there with both teams leaving it all on the floor.

After Emily Griffith banked in a three from the right wing to give the Railsplitters a 60-53 lead Mars Hill countered with a crucial 9-0 run to take a 62-60 lead with less than four minutes left in the game. Two free throws from Britney Guy once again gave LMU the lead at 70-68 with 48 ticks left on the clock. The Lions missed a would-be game tying basket and Lincoln Memorial hit its free throws to seal the 75-72 victory.