Morrow, Ga.----The Wingate University women’s basketball team (5-2 overall) will face two Peach Belt Conference powers in the Heritage Bank Classic Thursday and Friday at the Athletics and Fitness Center. The Bulldogs will play Lander University (6-2 overall) Thursday at 3:30 p.m. and host Clayton State University (7-1 overall) Friday at 5:30 p.m. The defending national champions, the CSU Lakers are the number five team in the most recent USA Today/ ESPN NCAA Division II top 25 coaches’ poll.
 
Wingate returns to the hardwood for the first time in 12 days. On Saturday, Dec. 17, Bulldog senior guard Kurie Washington (Marion, N.C.) had a game-high 24 points as Wingate earned a 73-53 OrthoCarolina Classic victory over Belmont Abbey in Cuddy Arena. The Bulldogs converted 29 Crusader turnovers into 38 points for their third consecutive triumph.

Wingate practiced Tuesday and Wednesday before making the journey to metropolitan Atlanta. “Obviously, we need to shake the rust off,” Wingate head coach Barbara Nelson says. “In the OrthoCarolina Classic (victories over Belmont Abbey and Erskine), I thought the team turned a corner. We played together more…with four games in seven days, we hope to continue this trend.”
 
The Bulldogs have three players in double figures. Sophomore guard Nikki Burton (Charlotte, N.C.) tops the Wingate charts with 17.1 points per game. The University of Louisville transfer is tied for second on the team with her 4.9 rebounds per game.
 
Washington averages 14.0 points per game. The All-South Atlantic Conference performer recorded a season-high in the Belmont Abbey triumph. Washington leads the team in three-point field goals made (10) and three-point field goal percentage (58.8). Sophomore guard Janitsha Williams (Statesville, N.C.) contributes 11.6 points per game. She made the All-SAC freshman team in 2011.
 
The trip is a homecoming for Wingate senior forward Simone Rutledge (Atlanta, Ga.) and senior guard Tiffany Brown (Cartersville, Ga.). The team’s spiritual leader, Rutledge posts 9.4 points per game and a team-best 7.0 rebounds per game. A Southwest DeKalb High product, Rutledge was the only Bulldog to start all 30 games last year as Wingate advanced to the NCAA Division II tournament. Brown averages 3.5 points per game. A Cartersville High graduate, Brown recorded 6.9 points per game and 21 starts for the 2010-11 Bulldogs.
 
“Simone and Tiffany are very excited to play in their home state,” Nelson says. “They will have more family and friends at the game than they did during our visit to the NCAA tournament in March. They are happy to share a part of their final college season with family and friends who are home for the Christmas holidays.”

Wingate and Lander met on the same court in the 2011 NCAA Division II Southeast Regionals, with the LU Bearcats earning a victory. The two teams have three common opponents (so far) this season. The Bulldogs have home victories over Carson-Newman and UNC Pembroke, with a tough SAC road loss at Lincoln Memorial. Lander defeated PBC foe UNC Pembroke and Lincoln Memorial. The Bearcats lost a six-point contest at Carson-Newman.
 
Clayton State finished the 2010-11 season 35-1 overall with the school’s first national title. The Bulldogs and the CSU Lakers do not share a common opponent (so far) this year. Clayton State’s only loss this season was a 63-51 neutral court decision to SAC opponent Tusculum in Dahlonega, Ga. Wingate and Tusculum play Jan. 7, 2012 in Greeneville, Tenn.
 
The last time Wingate and Clayton State battled on the hardwood was Friday, Dec. 18, 2009, when the Lakers rallied from a 16-point deficit to defeat the Bulldogs 69-65 on day one of the OrthoCarolina Classic in Cuddy Arena. Washington led the Wingate attack with 28 points. Current CSU senior Tanisha Woodard (Rome, Ga.) contributed 11 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, five steals and four blocks to the Laker effort.
 
The Bulldogs will stay busy after their Georgia swing, as Wingate visits NCAA Division I the College of Charleston (S.C.) Monday at 7 p.m. Wingate returns to the friendly confines of Cuddy Arena Wednesday, Jan. 4 for a 6 p.m. SAC contest against Catawba.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a comprehensive university with more than 2,500 students on three campuses in Wingate, Matthews and Hendersonville, N.C. The university offers 34 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, graduate degrees in business, accounting, physician assistant studies and sports administration and doctorates in pharmacy and education.
 
Wingate students gain the tools and support they need to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life. The campus community offers in-class learning, out-of-class experiences, strong mentors, a competitive yet caring environment and rewarding community service opportunities for a complete educational experience.
 
Bulldog student-athletes compete in 19 NCAA Division II sports. Wingate University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past five years.
 
Wingate University is ranked number three among NCAA Division II Academic All-America® producing schools in the 2000’s with 42 honorees during this millennium. Only Pittsburg State (Kan.) University and Truman State (Mo.) University have produced more Academic All-America® honorees during this time period. Wingate’s 51 Academic All-America® honorees (lifetime) is tops among all SAC schools.