Jan. 28, 2006

Final Stats

Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina erased a 10-point deficit midway through the second half, cutting the Wofford lead to two, 49-47. But it was as close as the Lady Catamounts would get, trailing by three-or-more over the final 10 minutes as they fell to the Terriers, 69-64, in Southern Conference play in the Ramsey Center Saturday night.

The loss snapped Western's nine-game winning streak over the Terriers and overshadowed a career-night by sophomore Monique Dawson. The second-year player from Charlotte, N.C., recorded her first career double-double, leading all scorers with 20 points and a career-best 11 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end. Freshman Teshymia Tillman, who saw more minutes at the point due to an injury to sophomore Ashley Pellom, finished with 16 points, three assists, and three steals in the loss.

Western only connected on one, 3-pointer - by Dawson at the 16-minute mark of the second half - shooting 1-for-12 on the night for a season-low 8.3-percent overall. The Lady Catamounts did, however, out rebound the Terriers, 50-45. In addition to Tillman's six rebounds, sophomores Chevon Keith and Jessika Johnson finished with seven and six boards, respectively, with freshman post April Parker also corralling six misses on the night.

After back-to-back WCU buckets and a quick 4-0 lead to open the game, the action settled down in the first half, enduring five ties through the first 10-minutes with neither squad able to sustain a lead. Wofford was the first to break suit, taking its largest lead of five points with five minutes remaining before intermission only to see the Lady Cats battle back and force two additional ties before the half. The Terriers eased ahead over the final two minutes and led at the break by three, 38-35.

Wofford pulled out to its largest lead of the game, 45-35, with a 7-0 spurt out of the locker room. But the Lady Cats recovered, answering with a 7-0 run of their own to slice the Terrier advantage back to three, 45-42, with Dawson tallying each point during the swing. Western would pull to within two, twice at the midway mark of the half, but the Terriers managed to keep the Lady Catamounts at bay to pick up the win.

Four Terriers (6-13, 2-8 SoCon) scored in double-figures, with a trio tallying 15 points apiece. Senior Nakia Mister, junior Mary Jo Yee, and sophomore Kelsi Koenig each finished with 15, and freshman Summer Nichols added 10 points in the win. Mister led the Terriers on the glass, boarding eight misses, and junior K.C. Correll tallied seven rebounds and a team-high three steals.

Western Carolina returns to action on Monday, Jan. 30, with a Noon tip-off at Elon. The game will be broadcast by the Catamount Sports Network and can be heard on Power 90dot5, WWCU-FM in Cullowhee or on-line at www.WWCUFM.com. Wofford is also in action on Jan. 30, visiting Georgia Southern in Statesboro, Ga. with a 5:00 pm tip.