Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University post players Danasia Witherspoon (Hickory, N.C.) and Kristina Rumplasch (Mount Airy, N.C.) combined for 35 points and 12 rebounds, boosting the Bulldogs to a 75-62 South Atlantic Conference women's basketball victory over Coker College in Cuddy Arena and Thomas Koontz Family Court Wednesday night. Three other student-athletes scored nine points each for the hosts.
 
With the triumph, Wingate improves to 20-4 overall and 16-3 in the SAC. The Bulldogs give fifth-year head coach Ann Hancock her 100th victory at her alma mater. In addition, Wingate posts its 25th 20-win season in the program's senior college history. The Coker Cobras are 5-19 overall and 4-15 in the SAC.
 
"We were in a fight tonight," Hancock says. "Coker's record certainly does not reflect how good they really are. I was proud of our girls for continuing to battle. It was nice to have Kristina back. She came off the bench and really provided a spark."  
 
Witherspoon led all scorers with 18 points on six-of-11 shooting from the floor. She also made six-of-eight from the foul line. The Hickory High School product shared the team lead with her seven rebounds. Rumplasch had 17 points and five boards, connecting on six-of-10 field goals and five-of-five free throws.
 
For Coker, junior guard Sydney Shull (Irmo, S.C.) had 12 points. Junior forward Iresha Cooper (Hemingway, S.C.) added 11 points off the Cobra bench. Coker committed 24 personal fouls, leading to 28 free throws for the Bulldogs. The hosts converted 22 for a success rate of 78.6 percent.
 
The first quarter featured three lead changes and five tie scores before Wingate settled for its 12-10 lead at the period break. A jumper by sophomore guard Courtney Robinson (Taylors, S.C.) with 38 seconds to go in the frame gave the Bulldogs the lead for good at 12-10.
 
Coker scored only one field goal in the first five minutes of the second quarter, allowing Wingate to build a double-digit lead. Two free throws by Rumplasch made the score 27-13 Bulldogs and concluded a 12-0 Wingate run at the 5:13 mark. A Robinson hoop gave the hosts a 34-19 cushion with 2:31 to play in the second stanza. The 15-point lead was Wingate's largest of the evening.
 
The Cobras scored the final nine points of the half to trim the deficit to 34-28 at the second quarter buzzer. Coker freshman guard Shay Jackson (Orangeburg, S.C.) banked in a three-point field goal (from 30-plus feet) at the halftime buzzer to settle the margin. Jackson and Cooper led Coker with five points each, while Rumplasch and Robinson topped the WU charts with nine points each.
 
Wingate nudged its lead back to 12 (44-32) on two Witherspoon free throws with 6:12 remaining in the third quarter. Coker finished the third frame on a 16-5 run to cut the deficit to 49-48 at the end of 30 minutes. Six different Cobra players scored during the flurry, led by Shull and Cooper with four each. A follow shot by Coker senior forward Lyric Levester (Jacksonville, N.C.) with three ticks left concluded the run and settled the halftime score at 49-48.
 
Bulldog sophomore guard Caroline Averette (Midlothian, Va.) hit back-to-back three-point field goals to start the second half to push Wingate's lead to 55-48 at the 8:27 mark. Senior guard Shelby Tricoli (Waynesville, N.C.) assisted Averette on both baskets. Coker didn't fold the tents, cutting the deficit to 56-55 on a Shull hoop two minutes later.
 
Averette had the answer, hitting her third triple at the 5:56 mark to make the score 59-55 Wingate. Coker would get no closer than three points in the waning moments. The Bulldogs scored 12 of the last 14 points of the contest to pull away for the 75-62 victory.
 
Averette scored all nine of her nine points in the fourth quarter. Both Robinson and junior center Marta Miscenko (Riga, Latvia) joined Averette in the nine-point club. Miscenko flirted with a double-double, as he shared grabbed seven boards to share team-high rebounding honors with Witherspoon. Wingate outrebounded Coker 36-21 with the Bulldogs pulling down 15 offensive boards.
 
"Caroline also provided energy for us off the bench," Hancock says. "Her threes seemed to create momentum for us. I thought our offensive rebounding effort was excellent."
 
Coker outscored Wingate 40-26 in the paint and posted six fast-break points (to two for Wingate). The Bulldogs scored 26 points off 18 Cobra turnovers, while Coker managed only 19 points off 16 Wingate mistakes. Thanks to the aforementioned 15 offensive rebounds, Wingate recorded 18 second-chance points (to 10 for Coker). The Bulldog bench outscored the Cobra substitutes by a narrow 36-33 margin.
 
Both teams shot the basketball well. Wingate hit 25-of-53 field goals (47.2 percent), while Coker made 26-of-52 attempts (50 percent). The Bulldogs dished out 18 assists, with graduate student guard Amber Neely (Charlotte, N.C.) handing out nine. Neely was in the triple-double neighborhood with six points and six rebounds to go with her nine assists.
 
Wingate hosts Carson-Newman Saturday for its regular season finale. Tip-off on ESPN3 is slated for 2 p.m. The Bulldogs will celebrate Senior Day along with Play 4Kay and Jane's Sparkle. Coker entertains Mars Hill Saturday at 2 p.m.