Lions sweep season series with Wingate, look ahead to SAC Tournament
Mars Hill clinches No. 6 seed in SAC Tournament; highest finish since 2015-16.
WINGATE, N.C. - The Mars Hill women's basketball team (17-11, 14-10 SAC) defeated Wingate (18-10, 17-7 SAC) by a score of 70-57 in the regular season finale Saturday afternoon.
The Lions put up a game-high 21 points in the first quarter, holding a six-point edge heading into the second. Tatum Bowen went a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor in three minutes, hitting two threes and netting a team-high eight points. Maddie Gillie added two threes of her own, ending the half with six points.
Mars Hill extended their lead to 13 heading into the half, outscoring Wingate 18-11. Bowen hit another two threes, ending the half 5-of-5, going 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. She and Aaliyah El led the team with six points apiece.
The Bulldogs began to crawl back into the contest, reversing the second quarter score and cutting the deficit back down to six. Aniyah Oliver led all players with seven points in the frame.
The Lions closed out the contest strong with another 20 point frame as the trio of El, Tateyoina Harris, and Lauren Arnold led the team with five points apiece.
Bowen led all players with 17 points, going 6-of-7 on the day, 5-of-6 from beyond the arc. Harris closed out the regular season with another double-double, scoring 15 and leading all players with 10 rebounds. El finished the day with 13 points.
The Lions swept Wingate over the regular season and with the win, secured the No. 6 seed in the upcoming South Atlantic Conference Championship tournament. It is the Lions' highest seeding since appearing in the 2015-16 tournament where they were the No. 4 seed.
Mars Hill's 17 wins are the most since the 2010-11 season.
Mars Hill will take on the No. 3 seed Anderson Trojans on Wednesday, March 5 at 7:30 p.m. at the Rock Hill Sports & Event Center. The teams faced each other in the opening round of the SAC Tournament in 2020-21 (AU 64-56). The teams split the season series, each winning their respective home games.
