LADY PIRATES GET HUGE 68-64 VICTORY OVER UMES TO REMAIN IN HUNT FOR MEAC CROWN

Monday, February 11

Princess Anne, MD

5:30 p.m.

Hampton University

UMES

LADY PIRATES GET HUGE 68-64 VICTORY OVER UMES TO REMAIN IN HUNT FOR MEAC CROWN

2.12.08 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – Senior guard Rachel Butler scored 15 points, including 12 in the second half, as the Hampton University Lady Pirates edged the University of Maryland Eastern Shore here Monday night, 68-64. The win ended a two-game skid for Hampton.

The win improved the Lady Pirates to 13-9 overall and 7-3 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Lady Hawks fell to 14-9 overall and 7-3 in the MEAC.

“I thought that our inside game was tremendous throughout the game as Quanneisha Perry, Ashlee Finley and Chinyere Ukoh did a great job for us,” said HU head coach Walter Mebane. “Rachel Butler stepped up and played extremely well and bounced back from a disappointing night on Saturday.”

In the first half, the Lady Pirates looked like the Hampton team of old as they shot 39 percent (11-of-28) from the field to go into the half down by three points at 34-31. Hampton dominated the boards in the first half as they snatched 26 rebounds to UMES’s 15. The Lady Hawks shot 40 percent (13-of-32) from the floor.

In the second half, Hampton shot 39 percent (13-of-33) from the floor and 71 percent from the charity stripe. The Lady Pirates’ defense was able to hold UMES to 33 percent (10-of-30) shooting in the second half. Hampton also grabbed 24 rebounds in the second to finish the game with 50 on the night.

The Lady Pirates went on a 13-0 run from 10:11 to 5:44 to take the lead at 60-56 in the second half. With 1:25 left in the game, senior guard Artiva Burns shot a pull-up jumper from the top of the key to put Hampton on top 62-59.

“Laura Lewis hit some key free throws down the stretch and I thought that was the difference in the game,” said Mebane.

Although Butler was the top gun in Hampton’s victory, Perry and Burns did their part as well, scoring 14 and 11 points, respectively.

Tiffany Reid scored a game-high 17 points for the UMES Lady Hawks. April McBride added 16 and Morton 15.

“Well, that is what championship teams do -- they bounce back,” said Mebane. “We knew that we didn’t play well (in the last two games) and we were struggling a little bit, but at some point in a season, all teams go through that. The ladies believed in themselves and they believed in what we were trying to get them to do. So, I knew tonight that they were going to come out try to play better than they did on Saturday.”

The Lady Pirates will return home on Saturday, February 16, after being on a four-game road trip. Hampton will do its part to support breast cancer awareness as they have their “Think Pink Night” against South Carolina State University at the HU Convocation Center. Tipoff time is slated for 4 p.m.

For more information on the Lady Pirates and Think Pink Night, go to www.hamptonpirates.com or contact the HU Office of Sports Information at 757-727-5811.

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