Cobras Fall in Hard-Fought SAC Battle at Lenoir-Rhyne

HICKORY, N.C.- Coker women's basketball fell on the road at Lenoir-Rhyne 59-52 on Wednesday (Feb. 8) in South Atlantic Conference action.

Coker jumped out to a hot start from the opening tip, winning the first quarter 15-10. Lyric Levester got it started with a layup and Caitland Considine followed it up with a jumper to get the visitors out to a 4-0 lead. After the Bears got on the board, Sydney Shull would score on the next three possessions to get Coker out in front 11-2. The junior knocked down a three-pointer, before hitting jumpers on the next two trips down the floor. Shay Jackson would get on the scoresheet with a jumper before Elizabeth Kincaid would get Coker's final two points of the frame on a pair of free throws.

After Lenoir-Rhyne took control of the second quarter, the teams went to the half tied at 21. The Bears stormed back before the halfway mark of the frame and took an 18-17 lead, while both teams struggled to score the basketball to end the frame.

The teams went to the fourth quarter tied at 36, after Coker battled back from a Lenoir-Rhyne run to tie the contest. The Bears held a four point lead multiple times in the quarter, and Coker was able to battle back and tie the game going to the final 10 minutes.

The teams traded buckets early in the final frame before back to back three-pointers from Lenoir-Rhyne put the Bears up by five with just over six minutes remaining. The Bears were able to capitalize on missed possessions by Coker, and take their largest lead of the night, 49-44. Just after the five minute mark, Elizabeth Kincaid drove the lane, was fouled and made the bucket to get Coker within one possession. Kincaid would miss her free throw but Trai Johnson would be there to put it back to tie the game at 49. Lenoir-Rhyne would re-gain its five point lead, before Johnson knocked down a key pair of free throws to cut the deficit to one possession. Coker could not get the ball to the bottom of the net in the dying seconds, and Lenoir-Rhyne was able to defend its home floor in a hard-fought game.

Sydney Shull led the Cobras with 11 points, while Shay Jackson added 10 off the bench. As a team, Coker outscored the Bears 15-5 off turnovers and 18-13 on second chances. The Navy and Gold got 24 points from its bench in the contest as well.

The Cobras are back at home on Saturday (Feb. 11) when they host Tusculum for homecoming weekend. Tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m. at the DeLoach Center. Tickets for the game are $5 for adults, $3 for students and free to all Coker faculty, staff and students.