Wingate University Athletics

Savannah, Ga.----Wingate University sophomore guard Caroline Averette (Midlothian, Va.) hit a jumper with 3.1 seconds left to give the Bulldogs a 76-74 NCAA Division II women's basketball victory over Armstrong State University in the Peach Belt Conference-South Atlantic Conference Challenge in Alumni Arena. Four Bulldogs hit double-digits in the season-opening contest for both teams.
 
Wingate sophomore guard/forward Danasia Witherspoon (Hickory, N.C.) led the visiting Bulldogs with 16 points. Senior guard and Academic All-America® candidate Shelby Tricoli (Waynesville, N.C.) had 15 points, while Averette and junior center Marta Miscenko (Riga, Latvia) posted 11 points each. Averette hit four-of-five field goals, including a crucial three-point field goal in the fourth quarter.
 
"I'm incredibly proud of our girls for their effort and determination tonight," Wingate head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock says. "Winning on the road against a very good team is never easy. Armstrong State played a terrific game. It was like a boxing match. They answered every punch we threw and so did we. It was a team win with very balanced scoring. Danasia was clutch down the stretch and Caroline was a huge spark off the bench."
 
For Armstrong State, graduate student forward Brigitta Barta (Budapest, Hungary) led all scorers with 21 points. ASU senior guard Jessica Doyle (Palm Bay, Fla.) and junior guard Machala Raymonville (Rincon, Ga.) had 16 points and 13 points, respectively. Raymonville led both teams with three three-point field goals, while Doyle matched Wingate's Tricoli with two triples.
 
Two free throws by Witherspoon tied the game for the 19th (and final) time with 22 seconds remaining. On Armstrong State's ensuing possession, Wingate sophomore point guard Courtney Robinson (Taylors, S.C.) came up with a huge steal with seven ticks left on the clock. Averette's jumper four seconds later was the difference maker.
 
Armstrong State had a chance to win the game in the waning moments, but Raymonville's three-point attempt fell left off the rim at the buzzer. On the evening, the Pirates tried 17 three-point field goals (hitting six). On the other end. The Bulldogs made three-of-five triples.
 
In a game which featured 19 ties and 18 lead changes, neither team led by more than seven points. An Averette three-pointer gave the Bulldogs their biggest lead at 68-63 with 3:59 remaining in regulation. A Barta hoop (3:39) and a Doyle triple (3:03) tied the game at 68-68. The two teams traded two points each until Averette's game winner.
 
After 20 minutes, Wingate took a 33-32 lead to the halftime locker room. The host Pirates led 27-20 with 6:19 left in the second stanza as Barta sandwiched two jumpers around a Bulldog free throw. Barta led both teams with 13 first-half points.
 
Armstrong led 30-23 when Wingate mounted an 8-0 run to take a 31-30 edge on a Miscenko jump with 55 ticks left on the second quarter clock. Barta hit two free throws to help the Pirates regain the lead before Averette drained a jumper with 18 seconds to go to settle the halftime score.
 
Wingate won the battle of the boards 42-37, as Witherspoon led the way with eight rebounds (four offensive, four defensive). The Bulldogs pulled down 17 offensive rebounds with six players grabbing at least two. Armstrong State junior guard Mercedes Jenkins (Jonesboro, Ga.) had nine rebounds to lead the host Pirates.
 
The Bulldogs won four of the five major specialty statistics categories. The Wingate bench outscored the ASU substitutes 26-19. In addition to Averette's 11 markers, Bulldog sophomore forward Zasha Barrett (Monroe, N.C.) posted a career-high nine points.
 
Wingate scored 17 points off 13 ASU turnovers. The Pirates managed only nine points off nine WU miscues. The Bulldogs also held an advantage in points in the paint (24-16) and second-chance points (12-5).
 
Wingate faces Clayton State University on day two of the PBC-SAC Challenge. Game time at Armstrong State's Alumni Arena is slated for 2 p.m. Saturday. Clayton State defeated Anderson (S.C.) University 84-73 in Friday's opening contest. The AU Trojans will face the host ASU Pirates at 4 p.m. Saturday.