Fourth Straight Win for Maryville; Next Game at Wesleyan on Saturday

DECATUR, Ga. – Another second-half surge lifted Maryville past Agnes Scott 56-47 Friday night in Collegiate Conference of the South action.
 
The victory keeps momentum in the Maryville huddle as the Scots now have won four in a row. Tuesday night it was a slow start and a big fourth quarter that pushed Maryville past Covenant. On this evening, the Scots started quickly but never could get things into another gear and had to grind for four quarters.
 
"We got off to a great start tonight but just couldn't put together another sustained run," Maryville head coach Darrin Travillian said. "However, I still believe defense travels, and we guarded and got some big stops.
 
"As we keep getting better, we are learning to win a variety of games. We challenged the squad to make stops, and they did that. Offense is still a work in progress, but you'll always take a road W in conference."
 
Carruthers on Target Early
Maryville poured on the points early. When Courtney Carruthers swished a 3-pointer with 7:16 remaining in the first quarter, she already had a pair of long-range bombs and the Scots led 13-4. The senior guard scored 10 of those 13 points.
 
Agnes Scots closed to within 19-16 by the end of the first quarter and then moved closer in the second. The host Scotties tied the score at 28-all and 30-all before a Gracyn Grantz floater in the lane ended the first half with Maryville in front 32-30.
 
Maryville got the halftime message loud and clear from the coaching staff and quickly pushed the advantage to 39-32 on an Ella Haney free throw. Ella Tharpe made 1-of-2 free throws with 1:04 remaining in the period and the Scots were in front 45-37. Chloe Roark's fast-break layup made it a 47-40 Maryville lead heading to the fourth.
 
Agnes Scott didn't quit, but points were at a premium in the fourth with Maryville outscoring the hosts just 9-7. No Maryville lead dipped below six points, and the Scots had their second conference road win of the season.
 
Carruthers and Haney were the Maryville scoring leaders with 15 and 11, respectively, although neither guard found her shot. MC finished at just 29.4 percent from the field and committed 20 turnovers, but they forced Agnes Scott into 26 miscues and came away with 19 steals. Carruthers had seven of those to fall one shy of her collegiate best.
 
Cathers Contributes Eight Boards, Three Steals
Olivia Cathers paced Maryville in rebounding with eight, while Haney and Emma Huskey had seven apiece. The Scots finished with a 48-38 rebounding edge. Huskey posted four steals for the second time in the last three games. Three steals by Cathers matched her career high. Those steals helped the Scots post a 22-9 scoring edge in points off turnovers.
 
All five Maryville starters ended up plus-12 or better in the plus-minus category.
 
The Scots are right back on the court Saturday afternoon at Wesleyan. Start time from Macon is 2 o'clock.