[Women's Basketball] Women's basketball defeats SAU in AAC matchup

LAURINBURG, N.C. – Montreat College women's basketball used a big second quarter to overcome Appalachian Athletic Conference opponent St. Andrews University 71-63 Wednesday afternoon on the road. The Cavs' third consecutive win bumps them up to 6-4 in conference play, 7-5 overall through the 2019 leg of the season.

The Knights opened the game with a quick 3-pointer, but Jessyka Leak answered with the tying triple 15 seconds later. A pair of Caleigh Raby 3-pointers would give the Cavs the lead on two different occasions in the first frame, but Montreat trailed by one after a period of play.

Raby once again took back the lead for the Cavs in the opening minutes of the second quarter with a bucket that sparked a dominating period for her team. After being tied 24-all with 4:09 remaining in the frame, the Cavs finished out the period on a 12-1 run to outscore the Knights 20-8 in the quarter and enter the half up 35-26.

The Cavs were able to maintain their lead through the third quarter and entered the final frame still ahead by 11 points. SAU would come within three points in the final two minutes of the contest, but Montreat held on for the victory.

Raby and Leak led the scoring in the contest with 19 points each. Additionally, Leak pulled down six rebounds and Raby was perfect from the charity stripe while collecting three assists. Taylor Cullen led on the glass with eight boards and posted a team-high five assists. Mariya Williams was close behind with seven boards. As a team, the Cavs shot 47.1 percent from the field and outrebounded SAU 35-31.

Up Next: The Cavs return from Christmas break to host Meredith College on Thursday, Jan. 2 at 2 p.m. ET.