Greeneville, Tenn.----The Wingate University Bulldogs trimmed a 20-point deficit to six in the closing minutes, but were unable to complete the rally, falling to Tusculum College 79-69 in South Atlantic Conference women’s basketball action Saturday afternoon. The Pioneers improve to 8-4 overall and 2-2 in the SAC. The Bulldogs fall to 7-5 overall and 1-3 in the conference.
 
Senior forward Staci Hicks (Loveland, Ohio) had 21 points to lead the Tusculum attack, going nine-of-11 from the field. Junior guard Kendal Baxter (Sevierville, Tenn.) also had 21 points, knocking down four-of-nine from three-point range. Junior guard April McCann (Chattanooga, Tenn.) had 11 points, seven rebounds and six assists for the Pioneers.
 
Senior guard Kurie Washington (Marion, N.C.) had 15 points to lead the Wingate attack. Sophomore guard Janitsha Williams (Statesville, N.C.) added 13 points for the Bulldogs, while senior forward Simone Rutledge (Atlanta, Ga.) and senior guard Tiffany Brown (Cartersville, Ga.) chipped in with 11 points each for the Bulldogs.
 
Tusculum used a 13-0 run to turn a two-point lead into a 22-7 lead 10 minutes into the opening half. Threes from Baxter opened and capped the flurry for the Pioneers. The ‘Dogs used an 11-1 run to cut the deficit to five with two minutes remaining. Junior guard Sarah Wollett (Raleigh, N.C.) had seven points in the spurt, while Brown added the other four. A Baxter layup with six seconds remaining put Tusculum on top 34-27 at halftime.
 
Tusculum used an 18-3 run early in the second half to take a 20-point lead. Junior guard Jama Hammontree (Greenback, Tenn.) had six points in the spurt, while Hicks added five. A jumper, two free throws and a layup from Washington cut the lead to 12 at the 10:30 mark. A Baxter triple pushed the lead back to 15, but Wingate scored the next eight points to trim the lead to seven on a jumper from Williams with eight minutes to go.  
 
A triple from Washington trimmed the lead to six at 65-59 with four minutes remaining. The Pioneers responded with a 10-0 run to put the game away. Hicks and sophomore guard Alishia Mosley (Cameron, N.C.) had four points each in the key two-minute spurt.
 
Tusculum shot 50 percent from the field, while hitting seven-of-17 shots from three-point range (41.2 percent). The Bulldogs shot 38 percent from the field, hitting eight-of-20 from beyond the arc (40 percent). Tusculum out-rebounded Wingate 41-32, while converting 20 Bulldog turnovers into 24 points.
 
The ‘Dogs return to action Wednesday, traveling to Lenoir-Rhyne for a 6 p.m. start. Tusculum hosts Carson-Newman Wednesday night at 6 p.m.