WILSON, NC - Francis Marion University sophomore guard Shannon Singleton-Bates knocked down a 10-foot jumper in the lane with 16 seconds left, and then after three Barton College timeouts, stole the inbounds pass with five seconds left to help the Patriots capture a season-opening 68-66 road win in Wilson Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 15) in women's basketball action.

Singleton-Bates finished with a team-high 18 points, 10 rebounds, and three steals. Senior Jennifer Dyer added 12 points and six rebounds for the Patriots and sophomore guard Robin Colbert notched eight points and eight boards for FMU.

For Barton, junior point guard Esty Flores netted a game-high 23 points and went 9-for-9 from the foul line.  Barton cashed in on 19-of-22 foul shots, while FMU was 18-of-25 at the charity stripe. The sloppy game featured 33 turnovers by the Patriots and 29 by the Lady Bulldogs.

Barton got off to a strong start and led until less than five minutes remained in the opening half. That's when FMU's pressure defense led to a number of Barton turnovers and the visitors surged to a 37-34 halftime edge.

Barton regained the lead with 15 minutes left and never trailed again until Singleton-Bates' basket with 16 seconds left. Barton's biggest lead of the second half was seven points at 62-55 with 6:47 to play. In its final 17 possessions of the game, the Lady Bulldogs turned the ball over 10 times, went 0-5 from the floor, and made four foul shots.

After a bevy of turnovers both ways down the stretch, Singleton-Bates cut across the lane and hit a contested shot that proved to be the game-winner. Following three timeouts in front of its bench, a Barton guard threw the ball right into Singleton-Bates' hands on the inbounds play and Francis Marion ran out the clock.

Senior forward Sara Fleming finished with 14 points and eight rebounds for Barton, while freshman guard Jannetta Robinson added 11 points and six boards in her collegiate debut.

Neither team shot the ball well as Barton was 22-of-70 for 31.4 percent and FMU made 22-of-69 shots for 31.9 percent. FMU controlled the boards with a 56-45 advantage.

FMU will play its home opener on Wednesday when the Patriots entertain St. Andrews Presbyterian College at 7:30 p.m.  Anyone wearing an FMU t-shirt will be admitted free.