Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University women’s basketball team concludes a six-game home stand Wednesday night, hosting South Atlantic Conference foe Lenoir-Rhyne University in Cuddy Arena and Thomas Koontz Family Court (watch PPV video, listen to live audio, view live statistics). The Bulldogs are 7-5 overall (1-1 SAC), while the L-R Bears are 7-3 overall (2-0 SAC).
 
On Saturday afternoon, Wingate juniors Janitsha Williams and Chantal Dunbar combined for 30 points and 26 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs to a 56-48 SAC home victory over Tusculum. Williams posted her second career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Dunbar notched her fifth double-double of the season with 12 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. Wingate is 4-2 overall (lifetime) when Dunbar posts a double-double.
 
Wingate leads the SAC in rebounding margin, as the Bulldogs outrebound their opponents by an average of 9.4 rebounds per game. Wingate outrebounded Tusculum 65-39 Saturday, including a 23-9 advantage on the offensive glass. Dunbar is second in the SAC with her 9.9 rebounds per game.
 
Five different players have topped Wingate’s single-game scoring charts this year. Williams has five game-high point performances; she is the Bulldogs’ top scorer with 12.9 points per game. Senior guard Sarah Wollett (11.5), freshman forward Morgan McGee (11.2) and Dunbar (10.2) also average double-digit points.
 
The Bulldogs are 5-2 overall at home this season. Both of Wingate’s home-court setbacks came at the hands of 2012 NCAA Division II play-off teams: USC Aiken (73-65, Dec. 7) and 2012 Southeast Region champion Lander (61-59, Dec. 19). Wollett and fellow seniors Tish Logan and Jecia Anderson are 33-10 overall at home during their four-year Wingate careers. The trio experienced five home losses as freshmen; they’ve lost only five home contests since.
 
Lenoir-Rhyne edged Anderson 63-62 Saturday to pick up a big SAC road win. Bear freshman guard Jordan Hiatt led the visitors with 13 points. Sophomore guard Jazmine Charles is L-R’s top scorer with 10.0 points per game. Seven active Bear players average between 4.0 and 8.9 points per game.
 
The two teams have one common 2012-13 opponent: local rival Belmont Abbey. Wingate earned a 56-52 decision at the Abbey (Nov. 24), while Lenoir-Rhyne finished the 2012 portion of its schedule with a 59-46 home victory over the Crusaders (Dec. 31). The Bulldogs swept the Bears in 2011-12; Wingate earned a 63-57 January decision in Hickory. Wingate scored a season-high 91 points to take a 91-76 February victory in Cuddy Arena.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY

Wingate University, ranked as the 6th “best value” in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves nearly 2,700 students on three campuses in Wingate, Matthews and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, graduate degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport administration, and doctorates in pharmacy and education. With a 14 to 1 student/teacher ratio, Wingate students gain the tools and support needed to excel in academics and apply that learning toward an extraordinary career and life.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past six years.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing private colleges in the 2000’s with 52 selections. Among North Carolina’s colleges and universities, Wingate’s 52 Academic All-America® honorees are tied for first (with Duke University) during this millennium. Wingate’s 61 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.