MONTGOMERY, Ala. - In a huge result in the SSAC standings, Faulkner (13-6, 7-3 SSAC) put up on of its best performances of the season in a 97-45 romp over Life (11-8, 5-4 SSAC) at Tine Davis Gymnasium on Thursday night. The Lady Eagles trailed 20-18 at the end of one quarter but outscored the Running Eagles the rest of the way 79-25.
Faulkner completely dominated the stat sheet, outshooting Life from the field 51.5% to 32.2%, from long-range 50% (15-30) to 15.4% (4-26) and from the charity stripe 80% to 33.3%. Life's numbers got a boost from the first quarter in which it outshot Faulkner 64.29% to 43.75%. It did not hit 30% again for the rest of the night. The Lady Eagles went over 50% in both quarters of the second half, as they shot 66.67% overall and 62.5% from three in the third and 52.94% overall and 71.43% from three in the fourth. Life's leading scorer in Kenya Robinson had just nine points while putting up 11 rebounds, seven more than the next closest.
As a result, Faulkner set a new program record for points in a conference game, tying for the fourth-most points scored in program history. The 59 second-half points are also the most scored in a half by the Lady Eagles in SSAC play and are tied for second-highest overall. The 52-point margin of victory marks the fifth-highest margin of victory in program history and the highest in conference play. Lastly, Faulkner tied its mark for third-most threes in a game with 15, also breaking its previous best from an SSAC game.
Ruthie Smith racked up 16 points on 6-9 shooting and 4-6 from beyond the arc to go with five boards in just 18 minutes. Avery Rogers tied her for the team lead in scoring on 6-10 shooting and 4-8 from three. Morgan Holland DeWitt earned her third double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 boards as well as a pair of steals. Point guard Keyarra Scottland made her presence felt on multiple fronts with 12 points, five assists and two steals. Brett Douglas put up eight points, five boards and all four of Faulkner's blocked shots. Off the bench, Audrey Blaine and Addison Cantrell scored 10 and nine points on 4-5 and 4-8 shooting, respectively, with four boards apiece. Relieving Scottland, Sydney Steward made all three of her shots and scored seven with four assists and three steals. Ella Jane Connell pitched in on the boards big time with seven rebounds.
Life is the first of the three cross-divisional opponents Faulkner will play just once this regular season. The other two immediately follow this contest next week, as Faulkner will make a two-stop trip to Georgia to take on ABAC and Thomas. The Lady Eagles will take on the Fillies in the program's first trip to Tifton next Thursday, Jan. 29, at 5:30 pm local (Eastern) time.
