Mars Hill loses 2018 finale to Catawba
In the 2018 regular season finale, the Mars Hill women's basketball team lost to Catawba, 83-48, in Stanford Arena Saturday afternoon.
MARS HILL, N.C. - In the 2018 regular season finale, the Mars Hill women's basketball team lost to Catawba, 83-48, in Stanford Arena Saturday afternoon.
The first period saw the Lions and Indians only separated by one point at the end of the opening 10 minutes. Leading for the first six minutes of the frame, the Lions, led by Mariah Johnson and Shayla Smith, dictated play and fed off of the home crowd. Catawba would take their first lead of the period with under three minutes left in the frame, going up 11-9 off of a Brianna Hodges' layup. The teams would trade the lead back-and-forth until the final 16 seconds where Elizabeth Webb connected on her second 3-pointer of the first period.
The Indians turned up the offense and dominated Mars Hill in the second period, outscoring the Lions 18-3, led by Webb's six points. In the first 5:25 of the stanza, Catawba went on an 9-0 run to distance themselves from the Lions. A layup from Cierra Hampton, the lone Lions' basket in the frame, ended the scoreless drought, but Catawba answered with a 5-0 run and closed out the half on a 9-1 streak to enter halftime up 37-21.
Smith led the Lions with eight points and five rebounds in the opening 20 minutes. Johnson added seven points. Webb led all players with 12 points, going 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Destiny McCollough chipped in eight points, going 4-of-5 from the field.
Mars Hill was unable to gain any ground in the third period as Catawba continued their dominant offensive performance. Outscoring the Lions 29-15 in the third, Catawba held a a 30-point lead entering the final 10 minutes of the regular season. Talia Barnes led the Indians with nine points, going 4-of-5 from the field. McCollough and Webb added six and five points, respectively. Johnson and Smith led the Lions in the frame with six and four points.
With the game out of reach, the Lions kept battling, but to no avail. Mars Hill was outscored 17-12 in a more tightly contest 10 minutes. Johnson added another six points to her total, ending the contest with a game-high 19 points. Morgan Franklin scored a team-high five points in the fourth.
Smith and Alexus Grubbs pulled down seven rebounds apiece for the Lions. Jewel Walston chipped in four point and collected five rebounds. Hampton ended the contest with six points and three rebounds and Valeriya Pokrovskaya added five points.
Three Indians' ended the game in double-figures. McCollough led the way with 18, followed by Webb's 17 and Barnes' 13 points.
The Lions end the season with a 2-26 (1-20 SAC) record. Catawba improved to 14-13 (12-8 SAC), securing the No. 5 seed in the upcoming South Atlantic Conference tournament.
