Nov. 14, 2006

Final Stats

Winston-Salem, N.C. - Western Carolina closed the first half with a 24-to-6 run to lead at halftime by two, and then only trailed once in the second half en route to downing Wake Forest, 74-71, Tuesday night in non-conference women's basketball action.

The win was Western's second in the last six meetings overall with Wake Forest and marked just the second in the last 31 games against ACC opponents.

"I am so proud of this team. Any win is a good win - we learned that last year - and this is a huge confidence builder for our team," said head coach Kellie Harper. "When we fell behind early on, we knew our shots weren't going in, but I told the team that we were good shooters and to keep shooting, they would eventually go in. I also think our defense helped give us a boost tonight."

The Lady Catamounts (1-1) were led by junior guard Monique Dawson with a career-high 24 points including a 10-of-12 showing from the free throw line. She was joined in double-figures by sophomore guard Lauren Powell with 17 and junior Chevon Keith with 11.

"Monique (Dawson) is always aggressive with the ball and she came in and made the plays when we needed them tonight. Over the final minutes, she did a good job of getting open and we were able to get the ball into her hands and she converted at the free throw line," Harper said.

Sophomore post - and Winston-Salem native - Kendra Eaton, who was playing in front of over 50 of her friends and family, just missed a double-double finishing with eight points and a team-high nine rebounds. Keith and senior Lynsie Lamitie each added seven boards in the winning effort.

WCU trailed by as many as 16 in the first half, 22-6, before closing the stanza by outscoring Wake, 24-6, to lead at intermission, 30-28. In the second half, the Demon Deacons (1-2) pulled ahead, 35-34, at the 17:34 mark. But a Powell 3-pointer at 17:19 put the Lady Catamounts ahead for good as WCU managed to take an eight-point advantage on two occasions before converting on 12-of-14 free throws over the final three minutes to hold on for the victory.

Wake Forest (1-2) matched Western's three players in double figures led by 24 from guard Yolanda Lavender. Alex Tchangoue finished with 11 while forward Corinne Groves finished with the double-double, 10 points and 12 rebounds.

For the second-straight game, Western out rebounded a taller opponent, holding a 49-41 edge on the boards over Wake. The Lady Catamounts also led in points in the paint, tallying 22 to WFU's 15.

Western returns to action this Friday and Saturday in tournament action in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Lady Cats face Xavier this Friday at 6:00 pm.