#7 Patriots’ streak snapped at 15, AASU wins 92-91 in OT

FLORENCE, SC – Junior guard Lauren Hall scored a pair of key layups in the final minute of overtime and senior forward Lacey Willis scored 22 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead Armstrong Atlantic State University to a 92-91 upset of seventh-ranked Francis Marion University, Wednesday evening (Feb. 25) in Peach Belt Conference women’s basketball action.

The loss spoiled Senior Night for Francis Marion (24-2, 17-2) and snapped the Patriots’ 15-game winning streak – fourth longest in team history. The defeat was also the first home loss for FMU, the second year in a row the Patriots have gone unbeaten at home only to lose in their finale.

The Patriots clinched their second straight PBC regular-season title last Saturday, but are attempting to stay No. 1 in the Southeast Region poll. Second-place Lenoir-Rhyne College also lost on Wednesday. Francis Marion will end its regular season on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Morrow, Ga., against the Peach Belt’s second-place squad Clayton State University.

The Patriots will be the number one seed in next week’s PBC Tournament (March 4-8) in Aiken.

Sophomore Shannon Singleton-Bates led FMU with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting. Junior Shana Franks added 16 points, while senior Creshenda Singletary scored 14 points and freshman 6-0 center Dominique Powell chipped in a career-high equaling 14 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Willis was saddled with foul trouble much of the game and scored only three points in the first half. In fact, seventeen of her points came in the final five minutes of regulation and the overtime period. Junior guard Dartayvia Thomas added 17 points and 11 rebounds for AASU (16-10, 11-8). Four other Lady Pirates scored in double figures.

Francis Marion took an early 15-6 lead only to have AASU rally to tie the count at 20-20. The Patriots led 40-34 at halftime.

A three-point play by AASU reserve forward Lindsey Hill gave the Lady Pirates a 49-46 advantage with 14:22 left in the contest. FMU quickly erased that deficit with a 21-5 run that gave the Patriots a 67-54 lead with 4:59 left. Willis then scored 12 of her squad’s final 20 points in regulation to rally the Lady Pirates. She accounted for six of an 8-0 AASU spurt that immediately cut the margin to 67-62.

A layup by Powell gave Francis Marion 72-68 lead with 48 seconds remaining. AASU guard Portia Jones hit a three-pointer to cut the margin to 72-71. After FMU point guard Kevina Ransom made two free throws with 23 ticks left, Ashley Duhart banked in a game-tying three-pointer from the top-of-the-key with nine seconds on the clock. Ransom then raced up the floor, but her layup rolled off the rim as the horn sounded.

In the extra period, AASU hit 6-of-8 shots, while Francis Marion managed only 6-of-13. FMU never led in overtime, but a layup by Powell tied the game at 86-86 with just under a minute remaining. Hall then scored her two layups amid traffic in the lane to up the AASU lead to 90-86 with: 20 on the clock. Five seconds later, Singleton-Bates cut the margin to 90-88 with a fast-break lay-in. AASU senior guard Lindsey Holmes then clinched the upset with two free throws with nine seconds remaining, before FMU’s Eboni Fields scored on a three-pointer at the final horn.

Francis Marion did force 29 AASU turnovers, but the Patriots were outrebounded 54-40 and managed to hit only 12-of-19 free throws, while the Lady Pirates were 23-of-34 at the stripe.

By Michael G. Hawkins