Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs are onto the SAC Tournament semifinals after prevailing 49-39 against Lincoln Memorial University in the opening round of the South Atlantic Conference women's basketball tournament Wednesday night in Cuddy Arena. The Bulldogs win their 11th straight, improving to 22-6 on the season and advancing to face Anderson in the SAC Tournament semifinals Saturday in Greeneville, S.C. LMU falls to 16-12 on the season.

KEY STATS

- Wingate shot 35 percent from the field; LMU shot 27 percent
- The Bulldogs went three-for-eight from three-point range; the Railsplitters went three-for-18
- Wingate scored 16 points off 19 LMU turnovers
- Lincoln Memorial held a 37-33 rebounding advantage; WU held the 8-7 edge in second-chance points
- The Bulldogs went 16-for-21 at the free throw line, while LMU went eight-for-14
- Wingate held Lincoln Memorial to single digits in the third and fourth quarters (15 total second-half points)

KEY BULLDOGS

- Emily Hege had 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a steal to lead the Wingate attack
- Bryanna Troutman added 13 points, eight boards and three blocks
- Hannah Clark contributed 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal
- Laney Beale had four points, five boards and three steals
- Lauren Sullivan added four assists, four rebounds and three blocked shots

FIRST QUARTER

- Hege took a Sullivan pass off the opening tip and scored four seconds in
- A Jordan Maney layup four minutes in gave LMU a 6-4 lead
- An Alexis Shulz jumper pushed the lead to four with 1:38 to go
- Saquita Joyner scored in the final minute to give the Railsplitters a 12-6 advantage

SECOND QUARTER

- Hege's three on the opening possession cut the lead in half
- LMU scored the next six, taking an 18-9 lead on a Schulz layup with 7:47 to go
- A Hege triple and two Leah Barringer free throws cut the lead to four
- A Chloe Savage bucket with 4:11 remaining pushed the lead back to nine at 23-14
- Beale's layup with two minutes left pulled Wingate within seven
- A Savage free throw gave Lincoln Memorial a 24-16 halftime lead

THIRD QUARTER

- Schulz's jumper in the opening minute of the half put LMU on top by 10
- Clark's layup the midway point trimmed the deficit to six at 26-20
- Two Alexa Smiddy free throws gave the Railsplitters a 30-22 lead with 2:43 remaining
- WU scored the next six, getting four points from Troutman and a Hege layup to cut it to two
- Smiddy's triple with 29 seconds left gave LMU a 33-28 lead heading to the fourth quarter

FOURTH QUARTER

- The Bulldogs scored the first 12 points of the fourth quarter to take the lead
- Troutman scored four points in the opening minute to bring Wingate within one
- Her layup at the 6:32 mark gave Wingate the lead for good
- Clark followed by knocking down a triple with six minutes left to make it 37-33
- Troutman's three-point play at the 5:23 mark put WU on top by seven
- Smiddy answered with a triple at the midway point to bring LMU within four
- A Hege jumper and Clark free throw gave the 'Dogs a 43-36 lead with 2:57 to go
- Three Smiddy free throws cut the lead to four with 2:26 remaining
- Two Clark free throws at the 1:33 mark made it 45-39
- Adair Garrison came up with a block on the other end, giving the ball back to the 'Dogs
- Beale missed a layup, but got her own rebound and LMU was forced to foul with 33 seconds left
- Clark and Hege went four-for-four from the line down the stretch to secure the win

UP NEXT

- Wingate is onto the SAC Tournament semifinals Saturday at Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C.
- The Bulldogs will take on Anderson at noon on Saturday
- The two teams met three times in the regular season, with Wingate prevailing in all three
- The winner advances to Sunday's championship game at 1 p.m. in Timmons Arena