DURHAM, NC – Senior Mikayla Sayle scored a career-high 17 points to lead four in double figures as Hampton defeated North Carolina Central 62-53 on Monday night.

Hampton (11-11, 7-2 MEAC) jumped out to an 11-3 lead on a jumper by Monnazjea Finney-Smith with 4:55 left in the first as the Lady Pirates kept a near double-figure lead throughout most of the first half.   A 3-pointer from Finney-Smith and a layup by Ashley Bates put Hampton up 32-18 with 1:50 left in the half.

In the third quarter, NCCU trimmed the lead to 36-29 on a layup by Rodneysha Martin with 7:27 left.  The Lady Pirates went on a 7-0 spurt over a 3:18 span to push the lead to 53-36 on a pair of free throws by K'lynn Willis.  Sayle made her presence felt in the third scoring eight of her 17 points in the quarter.  A pair of Sayle free throws at the 8:53 mark of the fourth gave Hampton its largest lead of the night at 57-39.

Finney-Smith had 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Jephany Brown and Bates added 11 points each.  Allina Starr set a season high with 10 assists for Hampton who hit just under 40% from the floor at 23-of-58 (39.7%).  They were 13-of-18 from the foul line (72.2%) and forced 16 turnovers.

NCCU was paced by Kieche White with 16 points, Paulina Afriyie with 11 and 10 rebounds and Caira Benton added 10 and six boards.

For more information on Hampton University women's basketball, please contact the Office of Sports Information at 757-727-5757 or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.