Lady Braves start season 4-0

By Dan Kelly
Assistant Sports Editor

The UNCP women’s basketball team has gotten their season off to an excellent start with a four-game win streak. The team had its most recent victories at home against Tusculum and Catawba.

The most recent game against Tusculum saw UNCP down by seven points at halftime, before holding their opponent to 23 percent shooting in the second half en route to the 60-48 victory.

Photo by Joel Beachum Senior Tracy Lightfoot sets a play during UNCP's victory over Catabaw.

Junior Tasha Stotler contributed a 15-point, 11 rebound double-double to help the Braves secure the win. Stotler is the Lady Braves’ leading scorer, dropping more than 15 points per game so far in the young season.

The team on the whole shot 49 percent to help outpace their opponents.

Freshman Natalie Ray came off the bench and chipped in with 15 points and seven rebounds.

The home opener against Catawba saw both teams playing well offensively throughout the game, as both teams shot around 50 percent at halftime. The Lady Braves were eventually able to pull away as the shooting efficiency of Catawba fell to 35 percent in the second half.

The Braves had five players reach double figures in points, led by Stotler with 16.

Senior Lindsay Bartholf shot 3-5 from the three-point line, finishing with 11 points.

While the final score was a fairly comfortable 79-73 margin, the Braves were never able to put the game completely out of reach of their opponents.

The season opened at the Francis Marion Classic, where the Braves defeated Fayetteville State and Coker.

The away victories were considered good wins by head coach John Haskins. Haskins said the team was able to handle the pressure well and get a good, early lead against Fayetteville State, winning 73-64.

The final score of 79-44 against Coker does not indicate how poorly UNCP played early in the game, but their superiority shone through to give the Braves a strong scoring rally near the end, Haskins said.

The outlook on the upcoming conference play in the Peach Belt Conference is being viewed as a challenge by Haskins, but one the team should be able to overcome.

“We’ll have our hands full every night. I do think we have a chance to compete night in, night out,” Haskins said.