Women's Basketball | 2/26/2016 8:54:00 PM

Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University women's basketball team (17-8 overall, 14-7 SAC) concludes the 2015-16 regular season Saturday, hosting number 21 Anderson University (20-4 overall, 18-3 SAC) in Cuddy Arena and Thomas Koontz Family Court for the Bulldogs' inaugural Blue Out game. 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 2 p.m.
 
Wingate will celebrate Senior Day during post-game festivities, honoring student-athletes Morgan McGee (Durham, N.C.) and Alysia Hudson (Jacksonville, N.C.) and student athletic trainer Katlyn Hinton (Kenly, N.C.). Both Bulldog basketball teams are partnering with the Kiel Colon Cancer Foundation (KCCF) to host a Blue Out awareness event as well.
 
"Saturday's game is a big game," Wingate head women's basketball coach Ann Hancock says. "It will be important in the regional standings for sure. We also want to send our seniors out on a high note. Anderson has played extremely well all season. They are talented and experienced.  Coach (Jimmy) Garrity does a fantastic job with them. They find ways to win. Defense and rebounding will be keys to the game."
 
If the first game between the two teams this year is any indication, fans will get their money's worth Saturday. On Jan. 16, Anderson built a 16-point second quarter lead and withstood multiple Wingate rallies on the way to an 89-87 victory in the Abney Athletic Center. AU junior guard Heather Jankowy (Walhalla, S.C.) led all scorers with her 23 points.
 
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. 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. 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.
 
On Wednesday, Wingate avenged an earlier loss with a convincing 74-53 SAC home victory over Catawba. Bulldog freshman guard/forward Danasia Witherspoon (Hickory, N.C.) led five players in double figures with her game-high 14 points. Witherspoon flirted with a triple-double, as she recorded 14 points, seven rebounds and six steals.
 
Home-standing Anderson built a 19-point lead Wednesday and survived a late Lincoln Memorial push to take a 67-62 SAC victory. Senior guard Madison Floyd (Cowpens, S.C.) led four Trojans in double figures with a game-high total of 14 points. Anderson scored 28 points from 17 LMU turnovers Wednesday.
 
The Bulldogs continue to top the SAC charts in field goal percentage (45.2 percent), while the Trojans are third on the same list (41.4 percent). Wingate (plus 9.8 points) and Anderson (plus 8.8 points) are one-two on the SAC scoring margin list. On the flip side, Wingate and Anderson are one-two in team field goal percentage defense.
 
THIS AND THAT

Anderson and Wingate split two contests last season with both teams taking home victories. On Dec. 31, 2014, the Bulldogs rang in the New Year with 59-48 home triumph. Wingate completed the game on a 17-3 run, knocking Anderson from the ranks of the SAC unbeaten teams. Bulldog graduate student post players Chantal Dunbar and Andrea Bertrand combined for 23 points and 17 rebounds for the victors.
 
On Feb. 7, 2015, Anderson won the battle of the number one and number two teams in the SAC by taking a 68-57 victory over visiting Wingate at the Abney Athletic Center. The AU Trojans snapped the Bulldogs' 12-game winning streak. Wingate had won 14 consecutive league games prior to the February set-back.
 
For Anderson, Monroe had 14 points. The AU Trojans outrebounded the Bulldogs 41-31, winning the rebounding war both times as the two teams split the season series. For Wingate, post players Bertrand and McGee led the visitors with 15 points each. Bulldog junior guard Shelby Tricoli (Waynesville, N.C.) contributed 11 points.
 
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.
 
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 information to this article. Pruett is senior at Temple University, majoring in Sport and Recreation Management.)