Shreveport – The Centenary women's basketball team saved its best for last on Sunday afternoon as the Ladies recorded a 61-53 victory over the University of St. Thomas Celts in a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference contest on Senior Day at the Gold Dome.
The Ladies (4-18, 2-12 SCAC) snapped their 12-game losing streak as they won for the second time at home this season after opening the season with a 69-64 win over LeTourneau on Nov. 5. The Celts dropped to 6-14 and 4-10 in SCAC pay with the loss. Centenary won its third-straight Senior Day game.
Three Ladies scored in double figures, led by a career-high 15 points from freshman G Alana Jones (Shreveport). Sophomore guard Addy Tremie (Sulphur, La.) scored 13 and Centenary's lone senior, G Jennae Mayberry (Clovis, Calif.) scored 11 in her final home game. Sophomore G Micayla Hamilton (11.6 PPG) led the Celts with a game-high 18 points and Olivia Anga recorded a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Jones added seven rebounds to her season-best 15 points in 30 minutes. She went 7-9 from the free throw line with a pair of steals.
Centenary shot 37.9 % (22-58) overall from the floor for the game while St. Thomas shot 32.7 % (17-52). The Celts and Ladies both struggled from beyond the arc, as the visitors made just 1-13 for 7.7 % and Centenary went 2-12 (16.7 %). Both teams were strong at the free throw line as the Celts made 18-19 for 94.7 % and the Ladies were 15-19 (78.9 %).
The Ladies won the rebounding battle, 40-34, and forced 17 turnovers. The Ladies committed 15 turnovers of their own but strong shooting overall and at the line along with winning the rebounding battle helped seal the victory. Centenary recorded 11 steals, five assists, and blocked two shots. St. Thomas tallied 10 steals and had four assists and blocked a pair of shots. The Ladies held a slight lead (12-10) after one quarter and outscored the Celts 16-11 in the second period to take a 28-21 lead at halftime.
St. Thomas used a strong third quarter to cut into Centenary's lead and trailed just 43-41 headed into the final period. A 20-13 run enabled the Celts to tie the game at 41-41 with 1:13 remaining but a bucket by freshman G Dymon Drumgo (Alexandria, La.) late in the quarter gave Centenary the two-point lead with 10 minutes to go. A layup by Anga with 7:58 remaining tied the game again and the teams traded baskets over the next few minutes which included several ties until St. Thomas regained the lead on a free throw by Anga with 5:11 remaining.
The lead would only last a few seconds though as Mayberry nailed a go-ahead 3-pointer for a 52-51 lead with 4:50 left. The Ladies made three-straight free throws for a 55-51 lead with just over two minutes left but then Hamilton sank a pair of free throws to make it 55-53 with 1:50 remaining. Tremie then hit a pair of free throws followed by two from Mayberry to extend Centenary's lead to 59-53 with just 26 seconds remaining. Tremie then went 2-2 from the line with just 13 seconds remaining for a 63-51 lead to shut the door. The Ladies' defense held the Celts scoreless over the final 1:50, as St. Thomas missed all five of its shots and committed three fouls.
Drumgo and junior F Jazzmyn Jones (Normangee, Texas) each scored eight points off the bench. Drumgo added two rebounds and a pair of steals in 20 minutes. Jones played 24 minutes and grabbed five rebounds and went 2-2 from the free throw line. Freshman G Mary Leday (Opelousas, La.) scored two points with a rebound and an assist in 26 minutes and junior F Amelia Bagwell (West Monroe, La.) had six rebounds, four points, a blocked shots, and a steal in 20 minutes.
Tremie played 37 minutes and was 4-12 from the floor and went 4-4 from the free throw line. She made one trey and grabbed eight rebounds with two steals and an assist. Mayberry played 38 minutes and pulled down eight boards and had four steals in a solid performance in the final appearance on her home court. She went 2-4 from the free throw line and made 4-9 shots overall.
The Ladies are on the road next weekend to wrap up the regular season with games at Southwestern (Feb. 18) and Texas Lutheran (Feb. 19).
A link to the Ladies' complete 2021-22 schedule can be found here: https://www.gocentenary.com/sports/wbkb/2021-22/schedule
Admission is FREE to all Centenary home athletic contests but be advised of current COVID-19 protocols for fans. Updated COVID-19 information is now available via www.GoCentenary.com.
Live stats and live video stream are available for all Centenary home contests.
#GoCentenary #CTheOpportunity
