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The victory was the second straight for 22nd-ranked Clayton State, which is now 8-1 overall on the season. In addition, the Lakers are now a perfect 5-0 on the road this season.
“I’m proud of these girls. They’ve been like road warriors this season, and we hung on to this one,” said Clayton State head coach Dennis Cox. “Playing last night with that emotional victory and then getting up this morning for the long trip down definitely played a factor. But Valdosta State is well coached and they never quit.”
Clayton State enjoyed one of its better shooting games this season. The Lakers shot 57 percent from the field, including 50 percent from 3-point range, and 80 percent (20-for-25) from the free throw line.
Senior Sharon Wiles paced the Lakers with 20 points and six steals, while senior center Alecia Humphrey had her second straight dominant game inside with 16 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field. Over the last two games, the 6-foot-2 Humphrey has scored 39 points on a whopping 16-for-19 from the field.
Marie St. Fort scored 12 points off the bench for the Lakers, and Shantel Ragin added nine points.
“Alecia is just on fire right now,” Cox said. “She’s shooting over 80 percent from the field over the last two games and rebounding well. That’s just amazing.”
Clayton State appeared to have the game well in hand in the second half. After leading 37-27 at halftime, the Lakers opened the second half with a 16-4 run to lead by 22 points. Wiles’ 3-point play capped off an 11-0 Laker run to open the half, and then two free throws by Marie St. Fort gave Clayton State a commanding 53-31 lead with 13:34 remaining.
Valdosta State, however, made one final push. Trailing by 20 points with seven minutes remaining, the Blazers battled back. Janelle Collanzo’s 3-point basket with 3:13 remaining trimmed the Laker lead to 74-64, and another Collanzo 3-pointer brought Valdosta State to within striking distance 75-69 with 1:17 remaining.
However, Clayton State hits its free throws in the final minute to seal it.
“We had a comfortable lead there in the second half, and then they just caught fire,” Cox said. “It was a two-possession game there in the final minute.”
Collanzo paced Valdosta State (6-3) with 26 points, while Carley Peterson scored 11 points.
Clayton State is off for the Holiday season. The Lakers return to action on Dec. 29, playing host to Elizabeth City State in the Heritage Bank Holiday Classic. |
before, the Clayton State Laker women’s basketball team overcame a
long morning drive to south Georgia and came away with a hard-fought
78-71 victory at in-state rival Valdosta State on Saturday.