Box Score Nov. 22, 2004
Final Stats
Cullowhee, N.C. -
Freshman Chevon Keith scored six second half points and pulled down seven boards as Western Carolina came from behind to defeat the Eastern Kentucky Lady Colonels Monday night, 73-60, at the Ramsey Center. The win was both the first for the Lady Catamounts on the season, but also the first victory for WCU's first-year head coach Kellie Harper.
"I'm very proud of this team for their effort and their never-give-up attitude," said a jubilant Harper following her team's victory. "It's great to get my first win here at home in front of our home fans. Chevon was very coachable tonight."
After trailing at the half, 33-31, Western Carolina (1-1) tied the game a minute and a half into the second stanza. Midway through the second, though, WCU put together a 13-3 run to turn a one-point deficit into a nine-point advantage, 55-46. The Lady Catamounts would extend the lead to as many as 14 down the stretch, holding on for the historic 13-point victory.
Keith finished with a double-double, 11 points and 13 rebounds -- both career highs for the Wallace, N.C. native. Joining the frosh in double figures was classmate Ashley Pellom, who tallied 10 points and a pair of assists in the win. Senior point-guard KiKi Glass rounded out the Lady Catamounts' double-figure scorers, matching Pellom with 10 points and a game-high five assists.
"After the Clemson game, I challenged Chevon to step up and help this team. She had a great couple days of practice and was very coachable on the floor tonight. I could not be more proud of the effort and performance she put forth tonight," Harper said.
Western's leader, senior Jennifer Gardner, gutted through back spasms all night, finishing with eight points and seven boards in 16 minutes of action. Her low block counterpart, senior Lori Tanner, also added eight points with four boards.
"During pregame, we were unsure whether or not Gardner would even play. Her effort tonight simply personifies her toughness and character," said Harper.
Eastern Kentucky (2-1) was paced by freshman guard Ashley Cazee with 13 points, two rebounds and two steals, and junior Laura Shelton, who added a dozen points and a team-high four assists.
The Lady Colonels led by as many as 10 in the first half despite being outshot 46-to-36 percent from the floor and being out-rebounded 22-to-13 by Western. Down 28-18 at the 7:06 mark, the Lady Cats went on an 8-0 run over the next two and a half minutes to pull to within two, 28-26. Eastern answered with a 5-0 spurt of its own to go back up by seven, with Western scoring the final four points of the first half to provide the two-point margin at recess.
The Lady Catamounts will now embark on the longest road trip in WCU women's basketball history, traveling over 4,000 miles to Fairbanks, Alaska to compete in the North Star Invitational, hosted by the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. Western will face Jacksonville State on Friday afternoon at 3:00 pm Alaska-time, some five hours behind Eastern Standard Time.
