ATLANTA, Ga. (Jan. 30) -- Hendrix College senior Christina Byler scored a season-high 24 points and junior Anna Roane poured in 14 points to lead the Warriors to a 70-66 conference win against Oglethorpe University on Sunday afternoon at Dorough Field House.
Byler matched her season-best mark with five 3-pointers and tallied a season-high 9-of-10 from the charity stripe. Roane was just 3-of-12 from the field, but a clutch 6-of-7 from the free throw line. Byler scored 13 points in the second half and Roane caught fire for 10 points in the final period.
Hendrix (10-9, 7-4 SCAC) took control early with an 11-4 lead, its largest advantage of the first half, with 13:13 remaining. The lead was short-lived as Oglethorpe (4-15, 3-8 SCAC) answered with a 20-3 run over the next seven minutes to go up 24-13 with 5:41 to go.
The Warriors narrowed their deficit to just three points with 3:04 on the clock after three-consecutive 3-pointers resulted in a 14-6 spurt. However, the Stormy Petrels closed the first half with an 8-1 spree to own a 38-28 lead at the break. Oglethorpe dominated the paint with a 24-8 advantage in the first 20 minutes.
The Stormy Petrels clung to the lead for the first 7:31 after intermission, until a pair of free throws from Byler with 14:15 on the clock ignited a 22-2 run and gave the Warriors a 60-49 lead with 5:17 left in regulation. First year Jamie Tate pulled down six rebounds over the game-changing run.
Oglethorpe would not go away without a fight and eventually took a 65-64 lead after a pair of free throws with 1:15 remaining. Hendrix responded with a clutch shot on its next possession when Byler found Roane open behind the arc for the go-ahead 3-pointer with 57 ticks left on the clock. The Stormy Petrels brought it back to a one-point game with a free throw on their next possession, 67-66, with 49 seconds to go.
Roane then turned the ball over on the inbound, however, Oglethorpe came up empty on a shot from distance and Roane fought for the rebound. The Stormy Petrels were forced to foul to stop the clock and Roane made it hurt with two clutch free throws, 69-66, with 30 seconds left. Oglethorpe missed a jumper on its next trip down the court and Tate came down with her ninth rebound of the half to seal the deal. Junior Samantha Devlin was immediately fouled and she went 1-of-2 from the line to reach the final mark, 70-66, with just nine seconds left.
Tate finished with eight points and 11 rebounds, while Devlin added nine points and three steals. Junior Caty Hensy collected eight points and eight rebounds. Junior Katy Ashley-Pauley tallied a game-high five assists. Hendrix shot just 31.7 percent from the field.
Junior Katie Weeks paced Oglethorpe with 18 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Sophomore Sarah Jones scored 17 points, while senior Chelsea MacDonald scored 11 and sophomore Sarah Giles mixed in 10 points and eight boards.
Hendrix now owns a 1.0 game lead over Millsaps and Trinity for the top spot in the SCAC West Division. The Warriors will entertain Southwestern on Feb. 4 before hosting Trinity on Feb. 5, both 6 p.m. CT starts.
For more information on Hendrix Athletics please visit www.hendrixwarriors.com or contact Brian Rejer, Sports Information Director, at (501) 450-1426. Also, be sure to follow the Warriors on Twitter by checking out @Warrior_SID.
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