Lady Cougars Win Second Straight, 64-51 over AASU

Columbus, Ga. -- Columbus State out-scored visiting Armstrong Atlantic State 22-10 over a nine minute span in the second half to pull away and sink the Pirates 64-51 in a Peach Belt Conference women's contest on Saturday. CSU moves to 14-9 overall with its second straight win and is now 8-5 in PBC play.

CSU led 34-25 with 15:03 to play and then embarked on the big run that sealed the game. The Lady Cougars scored the last eight points of the run without an answer from the Pirates as a Hali Moore layup made it 56-35 with 5:57 left. AASU was able to make the final score more respectable in the final two minutes as CSU head coach Jonathan Norton got everyone in uniform at least three minutes of playing time.

The two teams played a sloppy first half, each shooting just 34 percent. The difference in the game was a whopping 17 turnovers committed by AASU, off of which the Lady Cougars scored 10 points. The biggest lead in the half came after an Ashley Stafford layup made it 17-6 for CSU with 8:03 left in the half. A Moore jumper with 1:35 to play provided the halftime margin of 27-19.

AASU (8-15, 5-10) never got closer than eight points in the second half but did hang around within striking distance until the Lady Cougars hit a rhythm offensively and defensively that allowed them to pull away. Two Dartayvia Thomas free-throws cut the CSU lead to 34-25 with 15:03 left and that would be as close as the Pirates would get.

Phebe Smith led CSU with 21 points and 12 rebounds - her 17th double-double of the season. She has now scored in double figures in 21 of the team's 23 games and has moved into seventh position on the all-time scoring list, just 19 points shy of sixth place, held by Que Gilliam at 1,059 points.

Monique Jefferson hit three three-point field goals and finished with 13 points in the contest, while Moore added eight points. Nakita Holt handed out six assists.

Portia Jones led AASU with 17 points on 7-14 shooting, while Lauren Hall came off the bench to score 11, including a pair of three-pointers. Thomas led the Pirates in rebounding with eight. AASU shot just 33 percent in the game.

CSU returns to action on Wednesday with another important PBC matchup at Clayton State. The Lady Cougars trail both Clayton State and GCSU by two games in the PBC West Division Standings. Tip-off is at 5:30 p.m. in Morrow, Ga.