Complete Box Score

FORT WORTH, Texas – Shayla Coleman scored Wesleyan’s final six points of the game – all from the free throw line – as the Lady Rams held on to defeat the Lady Lions of Southwestern Assemblies of God University, 69-66. The victory ends Wesleyan’s losing streak at seven games.

The Lady Rams quickly got on the board in the first half when Shawndrika Courtney put back a Kim Cooper miss in the opening minute. After a SAGU bucket, Courtney scored again, followed by consecutive scores by Valen Little, and the Lady Rams jumped out to a six point lead. Jennifer Snow connected from long range to cut the lead in half, but Shayla Coleman’s pull-up jumper pushed the lead to five as the clock neared the ten-minute mark.

Wesleyan then exploded, hitting four three-pointers within a span of two minutes to extend the lead into double digits. Naomi Vann’s 15-footer with five minutes on the clock capped a 16-6 Wesleyan run, and put the Lady Rams up by 15. However, they would not score again in the half, and SAGU, led by Red River Conference leading scorer Angie Coleman, closed with eight points to cut the halftime lead to 38-31.

As the second half began, it was again Courtney who managed to get the offense going. Shayla Coleman then sparked a 12-6 run for the Lady Rams, connecting on a lay-up and a three-pointer on back-to-back possessions. Courtney then took over, scoring seven consecutive Wesleyan points. The Lady Rams appeared to be running away with the game, but on a bizarre play underneath the Wesleyan goal, Courtney was tagged with her fourth personal foul. She argued, drawing a technical foul, and was forced to sit for the remaining 10:41 of the contest.

Courtney’s absence in the middle gave the Lady Lions an opportunity to claw their way back into the game, and they took advantage of it. Branda Turner hit two short turnarounds, and Jennifer Snow connected on four free throws, and with 2:38 remaining, Wesleyan’s lead was down to just three points at 62-59. Little converted the front end of a one-and-one to extend the lead to four, but Laurie Fuller countered with a driving lay-up and cut Wesleyan’s lead in half.

With 1:36 on the clock, Shayla Coleman drew a hard foul and calmly sank both free throws, reestablishing the four-point margin. She hit two more 50 seconds later to put Wesleyan up by five at 67-62. The Lady Lions scored the next four points to close the gap to a single point, but with 11 seconds left, Coleman hit another pair from the line. A desperation three-point attempt by SAGU came up short, and the Lady Rams won for the first time since January 6 against Rhema.

Ashley Brisco led the Lady Lions with 18 points thanks to a nine of 12 night from the free throw line. Branda Turner and Laurie Fuller each chipped in 12 points and tied for the team lead with six rebounds apiece. Angie Coleman and Jennifer Snow each scored nine.

Shayla Coleman led all players with 23 points and 14 rebounds. It is her first double-double of the season. She also dished out three assists. Courtney finished with 17 points on eight of 13 shooting from the floor, and added four boards, three blocks and a steal. Little hit three early three-pointer and finished with 14 points. She also led the team with three steals in her first start of the season. As a team, the Lady Rams shot 38 percent from the field in the game, and 35 percent from three-point distance.

Wesleyan improves to 8-13 on the year, 2-9 in conference play.

The Lady Rams travel to Dallas on Monday night to face Paul Quinn College. In their first meeting of the season with the Lady Tigers, Wesleyan lost 76-69 after holding an eight-point lead with four minutes remaining. Monday’s rematch tips off at 5:30 PM.