Women's Basketball | 1/26/2016 3:20:00 PM

Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University women's basketball (10-5 overall, 7-4 SAC) will tip-off against South Atlantic Conference rival Lenoir Rhyne University (5-10 overall, 4-7 SAC) on Wednesday, Jan. 27 in Cuddy Arena and Thomas Koontz Family Court. The Wingate University Sports Network will provide a live video stream via its partnership with ESPN3 (live video, live statistics). Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m.
 
In their first meeting with the L-R Bears this season, the WU Bulldogs earned an 84-34 decision on Nov. 24. "This is always a big game for us," Wingate head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock says. "With Lenoir Rhyne being one of the closest schools and having been in the league since the beginning, it's one we look forward to playing."
 
"Lenoir-Rhyne has been playing really well lately…with a bigger, more athletic line-up that makes them hard to defend," Hancock says. "They are also extremely hard to keep off the glass. Rebounding and transition defense will be important. We are excited to get back to our normal routine game schedule."
 
In the November contest, Wingate junior guard Alex Tomlinson (Raleigh, N.C.) posted a career-high 17 points to lead the Bulldogs to an 84-34 triumph over L-R in Shuford Memorial Gymnasium. The contest was the SAC opener for both schools.
 
Interestingly enough, Tomlinson's previous career-high point total was 13 in Wingate's 56-49 SAC triumph at Lenoir-Rhyne on Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014. Bulldog freshman point guard Courtney Robinson (Taylors, S.C.) had 14 points in only her second game in the Navy Blue and Vegas Gold.
 
For Lenoir-Rhyne, sophomore guard Justyce Swango (Virginia Beach, Va.) had eight points. Bear senior guard Jasmine Stafford (Memphis, Tenn.) added seven points. Lenoir-Rhyne shot 16.7 percent from the floor (11-of-66) and six percent from three-point land (one-of-16).
 
Junior guard Shelby Tricoli (Waynesville, N.C.) leads the way for the Bulldogs with her season average of 10.3 points per game. Freshman guard Danasia Witherspoon (Hickory, N.C.) will follow closely behind as the SAC's leading field goal shooter at 54.4 percent. She averages 10.0 points per game. Senior forward Morgan McGee (Durham N.C.) will also put in work with her 9.7 points per game. McGee is determined to maintain her role as a leading rebounder for Wingate, as she trails Witherspoon by 1/10 of a rebound per game (5.4 to 5.5).
 
The Bears will fight for ball-control coming off the glass as they look to junior forward Brooke Robinson (Vale, N.C.) who currently stands fourth in the SAC with her season average of 8.4 rebounds per game. The athletic Robinson is sixth in the league in total rebounds (118). Senior guard Jasmine Stafford (Memphis, Tenn.) will lead the Lenoir Rhyne offense going into this match-up with an average of 10.9 points per game.
 
THIS AND THAT
 
Wingate and Lenoir-Rhyne played three times last season. The Bulldogs won both regular season meetings, while the Bears earned a victory in the first round of the SAC tournament. On Nov. 25, 2014, Tomlinson had a game-high 13 points, helping the WU bench outscore the L-R reserves 26-7 on the way to a 56-49 SAC victory in Shuford Memorial Gymnasium.
 
Bulldog guard Kelli Bonner ('15) added 11 points, while forward Chantal Dunbar ('14, '16) and guard Brittany Hill ('15) contributed nine points each. Dunbar led both teams with her 12 rebounds, giving her 20 double-digit rebounding games for her WU career.
 
On Jan. 7, 2015, Wingate's bench came up big again as the Bulldog substitutes outscored the Bear reserves 26-4 on the way to a 71-54 SAC home victory. Bonner had 15 points, while Dunbar recorded her 17th career double-double with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.  
 
Six Wingate players scored seven or more points. Hill and senior center Alysia Hudson (Jacksonville, N.C.) had nine points each, while forward Andrea Bertrand had eight points. Tomlinson contributed seven points and a team-best four assists.
 
In the 2015 SAC tourney first-rounder on March 4, L-R guard Jazmine Charles ('15) tallied 33 points as the Bears claimed an 80-69 triumph over Wingate. Dunbar led the hosts with 20 points and 14 rebounds, her 26th career double-double. Four L-R student-athletes hit double-digit points for the Bears.
 
Bertrand narrowly missed a double-double of her own, posting 14 points and nine rebounds. Dunbar and Bertrand combined to shoot 13-of-28 from the floor (46.4 percent). Their eight teammates who participated in the contest totaled 15 made baskets in 40 tries (37.5 percent). The Bulldogs outrebounded the Bears 42-32, turning 21 offensive rebounds into 20 second-chance points.
 
Wingate head coach Ann Hancock is currently 5-5 overall against the L-R Bears during her tenure as head coach. The Mars Hill at Wingate SAC twin bill originally slated for Saturday, Jan. 23 has been rescheduled for Monday, Feb. 8. The women's game will begin at 6 p.m., with the men's game to follow at 8 p.m.
 
The Bulldogs lead the SAC with 13 appearances in the NCAA Division II national tournament. Wingate has an overall NCAA tourney record of 15-14 with Elite Eight appearances in 1995, 1996 and 2008. The Bulldogs have won 11 SAC regular season crowns and seven Food Lion SAC tournament championships. Wingate finished second in the SAC regular season standings last year.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL ALUMNI DAY IS FEB. 13
 
Wingate University head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock ('92) and the Bulldog family announce the re-scheduling of the Wingate women's basketball Alumni Day for Saturday, Feb. 13. The Bulldogs will face South Atlantic Conference foe Brevard College as part of the festivities in Cuddy Arena and Thomas Koontz Family Court. Tip-off for this contest is 2 p.m.
 
The day begins at 11 a.m. with a chance for the alumni to meet and greet the current team. The alumni will be served a catered lunch at 11:30 a.m. Both the meet-and-greet opportunity and the lunch will be held at the Jesse Helms Center in Wingate.
 
Campus tours will be available from 12:45 p.m. until 1:30 p.m. The Wingate Outfitters (bookstore) will be open as well. The Wingate women's basketball alumni will be recognized at halftime of the WU-BC game.
 
Alumni can register (and view an attendee list) at this link. For more details, please contact Ann Hancock via E-mail at a.hancock@wingate.edu or via phone at 704-233-8172. Hancock and her team look forward to celebrating the past, present and future accomplishments of the Wingate women's basketball alumni.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University, consistently ranked as a top 10 "best value" in the South by U.S. News & World Report, serves more than 3,100 students on three campuses in Wingate, Charlotte and Hendersonville, N.C. Founded in 1896, the University offers 35 undergraduate majors, 37 minors and career concentrations, numerous pre-professional programs, master's degrees in business, accounting, education, physician assistant studies and sport management and doctorates in pharmacy, physical therapy and education.
 
With a 15 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. To view current news, video and story ideas, visit www.youtube.com/wingateuniversity. 
 
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 nine years. For more information, go to www.wingate.edu.
 
Wingate is first among NCAA Division II Academic All-America®-producing colleges in the 2000's with 82 selections. Among North Carolina's colleges and universities, Wingate's 82 Academic All-America® honorees are number one during this millennium. Wingate's 91 lifetime Academic All-America® picks are tops among all SAC schools. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com.
 
(Wingate University athletics intern Phillip Pruett, Jr. contributed this article. Pruett is senior at Temple University, majoring in Sport and Recreation Management.)