CHARLOTTE, North Carolina – The Winston-Salem State Lady Rams (11-17) gave it all they had, but they just couldn't overcome some foul troubles and some tough defense in an 88-59 loss to the Shaw Lady Bears in the second round of the 2015 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Women's Basketball Championship Tournament, Wednesday. The Lady Rams finished the game with 31 total team fouls and three key foul outs in the game while shooting just 33.3% from the floor in the hard-fought loss."In today's game, we got into foul trouble early and we had to go to some kids off the bench who weren't quite ready. I thought we could at least keep the game close until the second half and that didn't happen," WSSU head coach A.G. Hall said. "It was one of those things were where we got into too big of a hole and we spent our energy in the second half trying to battle back and it didn't go our way."
The Lady Rams' effort was on display for all 40 minutes of the game at both ends of the court. The Lady Rams forced 21 Shaw turnovers and shot a solid 33.3% (23-of-69) from the floor, but sent Shaw to the free throw line for 48 attempts in the game. WSSUS sophomore forward Jasmine Carter played another stellar game as she finished with a game-high 10 points, including hitting a pair of three-pointers. The senior duo of guard Taylar Wells and Briana Wilder both added nine points in the game while junior guard Kesheria McNeil finished with nine points as well.
The first half was a competitive affair for both teams, but a late slump by the Lady Rams put the team into a major deficit from which they would not recover. The Lady Rams looked good early with an 11-6 lead after Carter's first three-pointer of the game with 15:21 left in the half. However, Shaw answered the WSSU run with a six-point run of their own that left the Lady Rams trailing, 12-11, but Graham soon had an answer when a jumper from senior forward Jovanah Graham put the Lady Rams back on top, 13-12 with 13:24 left. From there, the troubles began for the Lady Rams as the team allowed six straight points by the Lady Bears and fell behind, 18-13 with 11:12 left in the half.
The Lady Rams had an answer with a five-point run to tie the game. The run was capped by a Wilder three-pointer at the 9:08 mark that tied the game, 18-18. From there, the Lady Rams continued to challenge the Lady Bears as a lay-up from junior guard Awa Kalmstrom kept the team within one point, 21-10 with 7:48 left, but a late slump by the Lady Rams proved costly.
Down the stretch of the game, the Lady Rams went through a five minute scoring drought with just one field goal made over a five minute span. The effort left the team trailing, 33-22 with 2:12 left in the half. Though a pair of WSSU jumpers softened the blows for the Lady Rams, the team was outscored 21-4 in the final seven minutes of the half and left the team trailing, 44-24 at halftime.
Unfortunately for the Lady Rams, the second half was far too similar to the first half. The Lady Rams started off strong in the first minutes of the half when they scored five straight points to cut their deficit down to just 15 points after a McNeil three-pointer. The effort proved to be all that the Lady Rams could muster, however, as Shaw continued their push. Carter's second three-pointer of the game came at the 15:18 mark, but was the only field goal by the Lady Rams over a five-minute span.
The drought left the Lady Rams trailing by 25 points, 57-34 before a jumper from senior forward Jovanah Graham broke the spell. From there, things gradually got worse for the Lady Rams as Shaw pushed its lead to as many as 31 points, 77-46 with 4:45 left to play. Late in the half, the Lady Rams made a valiant effort to cut down the deficit as they worked their deficit down to 26 points, 83-57 after a Wells free throw at the 1:34 mark. However, the effort was not enough as the Lady Rams finished the day with the 88-59 loss.
Unfortunately, the loss ended the careers for four Lady Rams seniors. Senior forward Dionna Scott ended her playing career with 896 total points and 443 total rebounds. "I've been here for all three years and these seniors have been with me for all three years so I'm extremely proud of the effort they've given and what they've given to the program," Hall added.
With the loss, the Lady Rams complete the 2014-15 season with an 11-17 record. For more information on Lady Rams basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.
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