DANVILLE, VA – The William Peace women's basketball team picked up their second straight win Friday night, taking down Averett University on the road, 60-50.
"Everyone stepped up, played well and did everything we asked of them. That's two games in a row where they just kept playing." said head coach Kelly Johnson. "We missed some shots at first and then rushed some others, but once we calmed down and got out of that mode we were just fine."
WPU (9-15, 6-12 USAS) shot just less than 30% (11-of-37) from the field in the first half, but the Pacers were feeling it from beyond the arc, as they hit six threes for a five point (31-26) halftime lead.
Averett (10-14, 8-10 USAS) came out on the other side of the break with a 6-0 spurt, taking a one point (32-31) edge, their first since leading early in the first half, 9-7. WPU missed their first 10 shots of the half, until Alexis Armstrong knocked in a jumper at the 15:19 mark to retake the lead, 33-32.
The Pacers led by four (42-38) with 11:05 to play, but another scoring drought of over four minutes led to an 8-0 Cougars swing, putting them on top by four (46-42). A bucket from Derrica Jones stopped the bleeding with 5:46 remaining, Krystal Williams tied the game up at 46 the next time down the court, and Ka'la Jordan eventually capped a 10-0 WPU swing that put the Pacers back ahead by six (52-36) at the 3:22 mark.
Brittany Boykin delivered the dagger with 1:15 to play, dialing one up from long-distance to push the Pacer's lead to eight (55-47), as they went on for the 10-point win.
WPU only shot 28.9% (22-of-76) from the field, but they held Averett to 34% (17-of-50) and turned them over 26 times for 17 points. The Pacers also out-rebounded the Cougars, 51-46, including 21 offensive boards for 11 second chance points.
Jones and Jordan had 12 points and seven rebounds apiece, while Jones added a pair of assists and Jordan contributed a dime and four steals. Boykin had nine points, four rebounds, four assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Dejah Cheatham hit three from the bonusphere for nine points to go along with three assists, a rebound and a steal. Williams scored six, brought down a team high eight rebounds, dished out four assists and registered three steals as well.
For Averett, Samm Chandler led the way with 14 points, six rebounds, an assist and two steals. Jessica Meyers had 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists and a steal.
The WPU women's basketball team closes their season out Sunday at 3:00 p.m. against Greensboro.
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