Women’s Basketball Set to Battle Barry in Regular Season Opener

COLUMBUS- The Columbus State women’s basketball team is set to open its 22nd regular season in CSU history on Sunday against Barry University.  CSU is under the direction of second year head coach Jonathon Norton who posted a 17-11 record overall and an 11-6 record in Peach Belt Conference play in his first season.

Nakita Holt is the lone returning player from last season’s squad.  The Lady Cougars have ten newcomers and must replace two-time Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year Phebe Smith. CSU posted a record of 2-1 vs. non-conference teams last year that they will face again this year and a record of 6-6 at home.  Barry and CSU last met on the hardwood at the Disney Tip-Off Classic in Orlando, Florida in the 1999-2000 season, with the Lady Cougars posting an 85-78 win.

The Lady Cougars are coming off Wednesday’s exhibition win over Lagrange College in which three players scored in double figures. The Cougars outscored Lagrange 45-24 in the first half, led by as many as 25 and cruised easily to a 78-63 win. Individually, CSU was led by Nakita Holt and Dominique Gilbert who both scored 16 points.  Tandria Milton also chipped in 11 points for CSU.  The Lady Cougars held a 48-37 advantage on the glass.

Barry University returns nine players off last season’s NCAA Tournament squad which finished with a record of 21-10, and also advanced to the finals of the Sunshine State Conference Tournament. The Lady Bucs are coached by Bill Sullivan who enters his third year at the helm with an overall record of 32-25 in two seasons. The Lady Bucs posted an 11-4 record vs. non-conference opponents last year, with a record of 1-1 on the road.

Barry returns only one player who averaged more than four points per game. Individually Barry’s leading returning scorer is junior Shanna Suttington who averaged 9.0 points and 3.3 assists in 30 games played last season. Another player to watch for Barry is Ardrienne Hicks who averaged 16.8 minutes per contest last year. Hicks averaged 5.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game and shot 47.6 percent from behind the arc over her last 14 contests.

The Bucs are also hoping that a pair of transfer perimeter players will have an immediate impact.  Danielle Deberry, a Division I transfer from North Carolina Central joins the program after averaging 7.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game last season for the Eagles.  Transfer Jen Mitchell will also add depth to the backcourt for the Lady Bucs.  Mitchell averaged over 10 points per contest last year for the Saints of Flagler College.

Tip-off for Sunday’s contest is set for 1 p.m. at the Lumpkin Center.  Live Stats will also be available through csu.cougars.com. The Lady Cougars will return to action on November 23 against Valdosta State.