Anderson, S.C.----The NCAA Division II number 14 Anderson University women's basketball team built a 16-point second quarter lead and withstood multiple Wingate University rallies on the way to a 89-87 South Atlantic Conference victory Saturday in the Abney Athletic Center. AU junior guard Heather Jankowy (Walhalla, S.C.) led all scorers with her 23 points.
 
With the victory, Anderson improves to 12-1 overall and 10-0 in the SAC. The Trojans have won four in a row following a 63-49 setback to nationally-ranked Limestone on Dec. 31. Wingate is 9-5 overall and 6-4 in the SAC. The Bulldogs host Queens University of Charlotte Wednesday at 6 p.m., as Wingate starts a three-game home stand. Anderson entertains Carson-Newman Wednesday at the same time.
 
"Anderson is a very good team," Wingate head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock says. "They are deserving of their ranking. They have experienced players who know how to win.  When the game was on the line, they stepped up and made big plays. Anderson did the little things to win." 
 
Jankowy hit seven-of-11 field goals and four-of-six from three-point land. She added seven assists and five rebounds to her statistical ledger Saturday. AU senior forward Jennifer Monroe (Clemson, S.C.) had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while junior center Alexis Dillard (Taylors, S.C.) added 17 points.
 
For Wingate, freshman guard Courtney Robinson (Taylors, S.C.) had a career-high 22 points. She hit nine-of-13 field goal attempts Saturday. Bulldog senior forward Morgan McGee (Durham, N.C.) had 13 points, while junior forward Kristina Rumplasch (Mount Airy, N.C.) contributed 12 markers. WU junior guard Alex Tomlinson (Raleigh, N.C.) joined the double-figure scoring club with 10 points, thanks to a three-point field goal with one second left in the fourth quarter.
 
The Trojans scored the first eight points of the contest. Anderson led 24-8 on two free throws by senior forward/center Katie Davis (Wake Forest, N.C.) with 2:29 left in the first frame. The 16-point advantage was the hosts' largest lead of the afternoon.
 
Wingate cut the deficit to 46-43 at intermission, thanks to a 29-point second quarter. Two lay-ups by Robinson (2:58, 0:55) cut the margin to 42-40 and 44-42, respectively. A Tricoli free throw with 32 seconds left made the score 44-43 Anderson. Jankowy made a jumper in the paint with three seconds remaining to settle the halftime score.
 
Robinson had 17 of her team-high 22 points at halftime. Monroe led the AU Trojans with 11 first-half points. Both teams had nine players find the scoring column in the opening 20 minutes. Anderson shot 55.2 percent in the first half (16-of-29), while Wingate made 48.6 percent of its first-half tries (18-of-37). The Trojans made four triples in the first half (four-of-eight), while the Bulldogs missed both of their first half three-point tries (zero-of-two).
 
A Jankowy triple on an assist from junior guard Nakia Young (Taylors, S.C.) gave Anderson a 67-53 lead with 3:23 to go in the third quarter. Wingate cut the deficit to nine points three times in the waning moments of the third frame, the final time on a Rumplasch jumper with seven seconds left. The bucket made the score 71-62 Anderson entering the fourth quarter.
 
Robinson's three-point field goal on Wingate's first possession of the fourth quarter pulled the Bulldogs within six points. Freshman guard Caroline Averette (Midlothian, Va.) assisted on the play. Monroe's lay-up on a Jankowy dish made the score 81-70 with 4:23 remaining.
 
Wingate made another move, as freshman guard/forward Danasia Witherspoon (Hickory, N.C.) hit two free throws at the 2:55 mark to make the score 83-78 Trojans. McGee hit two charity tosses with 1:31 to play to pull the 'Dogs within three at 83-80.
 
The visitors would get no closer, as the AU Trojans hit six-of-six free throws in the final 83 seconds to keep the Bulldogs at bay. Young hit four-of-four, while Jankowy drained the other two. Tomlinson's triple with one tick on the clock settled the final two-point margin.
 
Anderson had its second-best shooting night of the season, converting 51.7 percent from the floor (30-of-58). The Trojans hit 55.2 percent of their field goals in an 87-57 victory over Coker on Dec. 16. Wingate was not too far behind, shooting 47.1 percent from the field (33-of-70). Anderson hit seven triples (in 15 attempts), while Wingate made four trifectas in seven tries.
 
Anderson held a slim 35-34 rebounding edge, thanks to Monroe's 11 caroms. McGee and Witherspoon had four rebounds each for Wingate. The Bulldogs won four of the five primary specialty statistical categories, holding a 50-30 advantage on points in the paint. Wingate's bench outscored Anderson's reserves 28-16. The Bulldogs held 20-14 and 20-13 edges in points off turnovers and second-chance points, respectively.
 
"Free throws and rebounding are always important and proved to be crucial in today's game as well (Anderson made 22-of-25 charity tosses)," Hancock says. "Courtney Robinson had a very good game…to be a freshman in such a challenging environment…she excelled."