AU women end historic season with a first-round loss to Carson-Newman
Justin Gray | Sports editor
The seventh-seeded Augusta University women fell to the two-seeded Carson-Newman Eagles, 61-55, at Catawba University in Salisbury, N.C., on Friday, March 15.
Mone Florence set the tone with a three-pointer eight seconds into the game. The Jaguars rode that start to a 12-4 lead and looked in command.
Carson-Newman went on a 14-4 run to close the quarter with the lead at 18-16.
The second quarter was just as tight, as neither team could get away from the other. At the break the Jaguars trailed 30-28.
In the third quarter, the Jaguars took over and tried to run away as Florence knocked down two 3-pointers along with a Brianna Meekins layup to give the Jaguars a 40-34 lead. C-N battled back by the end of the quarter, cutting the lead to 45-43.
Augusta was up 49-45 when C-N made its final push. The Eagles went on an 11-0 run to basically put the Jaguars away and their season ended in the NCAA tournament.
“Obviously, it’s not the outcome we would’ve liked,” said AU Coach Celeste Stewart. “I am proud of our team and our fight. We made history time and time again for our program this season.”
Florence continued her recent hot streak with a 16-point game in this one. She shot 4 of 7 from behind the arc and grabbed five rebounds. She also picked up three steals.
Senior Tomiyah Alford played well in her final game with 15 points and four steals. Graduate student Kennedi Manning scored 12 points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots.
“The hustle and the fight of this team is what helped us make it this far,” said Manning, the Stone Mountain native, after her final game in a Jaguar uniform. “My favorite part of this team was being able to win on the road. We only lost three games on the road all season, and I had never been a part of something like that.”
Carson-Newman took down Anderson, 74-54, the following day to advance to the Sweet 16, where they will face PBC champion Georgia Southwestern on Monday, March 18, for the right to go to the Elite Eight.
AU wrapped up this season with a 22-9 overall record. The Jaguars had the most conference regular-season wins and the second most overall wins in program history.
Contact Justin Gray at jusgray@augusta.edu.
AU’s Mone Florence (1) led the Jaguars with 16 points, five rebounds and three steals in the loss to the Eagles. At the top of the page, Tomiyah Alford closed out her career with 15 points and four steals. (photos by Paula Toole, AU Athletics)
