Morrow, Ga.----Columbus State University junior guard Michelle Mitchell (Eastman, Ga.) recorded 25 points as the Cougars withstood a furious rally to take a 77-69 triumph over Wingate University Saturday afternoon in the Loch Shop Region Challenge at the Athletics and Fitness Center on the CSU campus. Mitchell scored 45 points in two Loch Shop Region Challenge games.
 
Columbus State led by 16 points in the second half before Wingate cut the deficit to two points in the waning moments. The favorites to win the 2015 Peach Belt Conference championship, the CSU Cougars improve to 2-0 overall. The 2014 South Atlantic Conference regular season and tournament champion Wingate Bulldogs are 0-2 overall. Wingate opens SAC play Wednesday, traveling to Catawba for a 6 p.m. contest.
 
For the CSU Cougars, sophomore guard Britteny Tatum (LaGrange, Ga.) had 13 points. Junior forward Kadayasha Jones (Eastman, Ga.) had 12 points and 13 rebounds. Guard Dee Dee Deshazer (Tifton, Ga.) posted 11 points.
 
For Wingate, junior guard Amber Neely (Charlotte, N.C.) had 14 points, three assists and three steals. Senior guard Kelli Bonner (Yadkinville, N.C.) and junior forward Morgan McGee (Durham, N.C.) had 13 points each, while sophomore guard Shelby Tricoli (Waynesville, N.C.) added 10 points and three steals.
 
"Columbus State has a great team full of talent," Wingate head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock says. "They have a balanced inside/outside attack. They were dominant on the boards and hit big perimeter shots when they needed to do so."
 
"We also had a balanced scoring attack with four players in double-figure scoring," Hancock says. "We must work on keeping opponents off the glass and converting from the free throw line."
 
Columbus State outrebounded Wingate 55-36. CSU senior wing Carrie Washington (Donalsonville, Ga.) had 15 boards to lead both teams. Washington narrowly missed joining Jones with a double-double, as she contributed nine points. Washington filled out her statistics ledger with four steals, three blocked shots and two assists.
 
A three-point field goal by freshman guard Erin Morrow (Johns Creek, Ga.) gave the Cougars a 58-42 advantage with 11:29 to play in regulation. Wingate needed less than four minutes to cut the margin to six, as a Tricoli three-pointer shaved the deficit to 60-54 with 7:48 remaining.
 
A fast break lay-up by Wingate redshirt senior guard Brittany Hill (Mechanicsville, Va.) made the score 62-60 Columbus State with 3:17 left. Mitchell and Neely traded made jumpers to boost the score to 64-62 CSU with 2:33 to go.
 
Wingate would get no closer, as a Tatum lay-up, a Jones jumper and a Mitchell jumper nudged the CSU lead to 70-62 with 90 seconds on the clock. The Bulldogs would score seven points in the last 68 seconds, but they could get no closer than four points down the stretch.
 
The first half featured six tie scores and four lead changes. Wingate led 19-10 with 11:15 left in the first frame, thanks to a three-point field goal by Bonner. The nine-point advantage was Wingate's largest of the afternoon. The Cougars made a 12-3 run to tie the score 22-22 on a Mitchell jumper with 4:55 to play.
 
A lay-up by Hill tied the contest for the final time at 28-28 three minutes later. Deshazer nailed a triple on the next trip down the floor, giving the CSU Cougars the lead for keeps at the 1:28 mark. Columbus State scored the final eight points of the first half to take a 36-28 lead to the halftime locker room.
 
Mitchell had 14 first-half points to lead both teams. McGee had nine points for the Bulldogs. Columbus State made 51.5 percent of its first half field goals (17-of-33), while Wingate hit only 33.3 percent (11-of-33) in the first 20 minutes.
 
"This was a good weekend for us to get prepared for conference play," Hancock says. "The competition was outstanding and gave us an idea of where we need to be to advance in region play. If we continue to play with the effort we did this weekend, good things will happen."