Both teams started off very sluggish at the on-set of the game, not mustering up much offense. The first basket of the game wasn’t scored until two minutes passed as CSU took the early lead on a Carrie Washington layup. Each team would trade off baskets until the Lady Cougars scored on back-to-back possessions giving them an 8-4 advantage at the 15:16 mark. Shorter would then go on a 10-2 run over the next four minutes and twenty seconds, taking a 14-10 lead with a little under eleven minutes to play in the first half.
The Lady Cougars responded with a run of their own, outscoring the Hawks by a 20-5 margin over the next five minutes and forty two seconds, posting their largest lead of the night at twelve, with 2:01 remaining in the first half. The two teams would then head into the half with CSU up by eight 35-27.
The Lady Cougars and Hawks would trade baskets for the first two and half minutes of play to start the second half. A three point basket by Robyn Foster and a Brittney Smith jumper would cut the Lady Cougar lead to 38-34 with 17:01 remaining.
CSU struggled to put the pesky Lady Hawks away as Shorter cut the CSU lead to one at 40-39, with eleven minutes and nineteen seconds to play in the contest. A Dominique Gilbert bucket at the 10:59 mark pushed the CSU lead back to three, but once again Shorter would respond. A Daniel Abbie jumper cut the Lady Cougar lead to one at 42-41, with ten minutes and thirty three seconds to play.
An 11-0 run by CSU would finally put the game out of reach, putting the Cougars up by twelve 53-41 with 6:59 remaining. The run was highlighted by tremendous defense by the Lady Cougars in which they forced five Shorter turnovers.
Shorter would get no closer than nine the rest of the way, with CSU registering the 15 point victory 66-51. Dominique Gilbert led the way for the Lady Cougars with a game-high 22 points while also grabbing eight boards.
The game featured a balanced offensive attack for CSU in which four players scored in double figures. Senior guard Nakita Holt chipped in with 12 points and five rebounds. Asha Alexander and Tandria Milton added 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Lady Cougars grabbed 16 offensive rebounds for the contest, and held a slight advantage on the boards for the game 41-40. Columbus State outscored Shorter 32-22 in the paint.
Defensively, CSU was tremendous once again, holding Shorter to 32.7 percent shooting from the floor. The Lady Cougars forced twenty Shorter turnovers that led to 24 points. CSU blocked ten Lady Hawk shots on the night, with Gilbert, Washington, and Marah Wright all registering three blocks each.
CSU returns to the court on Friday, December 3 when it takes on Alabama-Huntsville in the first game of the Highpointe Hotel Corporation UWF Argo Classic. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m. at the UWF Field House in Pensacola, FL. Eckerd and West Florida will play in the second contest scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. The Lady Cougars will take on UWF on Saturday at 5:00 p.m.
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