COLUMBUS, GA - Senior point guard Kevina Ransom scored 15 points, recorded 11 steals, and handed out four assists to lead Francis Marion University to a 78-67 road win over Columbus State University, Saturday afternoon (Jan. 10) in Peach Belt Conference women's basketball action.

Francis Marion, playing its third consecutive PBC road contest, rebounded from its first loss of the season on Wednesday to improve to 10-1 overall and 3-1 in the Peach Belt.  The victory was only the Patriots' fifth in 17 all-time visits to Columbus.

Ransom connected on 7-of-12 shots and equaled the second-highest steal total in team history, one shy of her own record of 12 set last year.

Three other Patriots scored in double figures: senior guard Jennifer Dyer 13, sophomore forward Shannon Singleton-Bates 12, and senior forward Creshenda Singletary 10.

Phebe Smith led four CSU (9-5, 2-2) players in double digits with 15 points.

After leading by as many as seven points in the opening half, FMU went to the locker room with a 33-32 advantage at intermission.

The Patriots opened the second stanza with a 9-1 spurt that pushed the lead to 42-33.  After the Lady Cougars scored six straight points to trim the margin to 42-38 with 15:48 left, Francis Marion took control of the game with a 16-1 run over the next 3:34.  A three-pointer by Dyer capped the sequence and gave FMU a 58-39 lead.

With Francis Marion leading by 21 points, Columbus State scored 16 of the game's final 22 points to cut the deficit to 11 points at the final horn.

Francis Marion forced 36 Lady Cougar turnovers and converted those miscues into 39 points, while also holding a 24-6 lead in fast-break points.

After the three road contests, FMU will return home to host UNC Pembroke on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.  During the doubleheader, a drawing will be held so one fan can shoot a half-court shot to win $10,000. This event will introduce the Carolina Automotive Cup competition between FMU and UNCP that will begin in the fall.

01/10/08 2:00 PM at Columbus, GA...Lumpkin Center

FRANCIS MARION 78, COLUMBUS STATE 67

FRANCIS MARION (10-1, 3-1 PBC)

Ransom, Kevina 7-12 1-1 15; Dyer, Jennifer 4-10 3-4 13; Singleton-Bates, Sha 4-10 4-5 12; Singletary,Creshenda 5-7 0-0 10; Downs, Danelle 3-3 2-2 8; Powell, Dominique 2-5 2-2 6; Franks, Shana 3-8 0-0 6; Colbert, Robin 2-7 1-2 5; Fields, Eboni 1-8 0-0 3; Kiefer, Katherine 0-0 0-0 0; Morgan, Shaquana 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-70 13-16 78.

COLUMBUS STATE (9-5, 2-2 PBC)

Smith, Phebe 4-6 7-9 15; Moore, Hali 6-8 1-2 13; Hollis, Rosetta 3-9 5-10 11; Stafford, Ashley 4-12 2-7 10; Ferdinand, Chauntel 3-6 2-2 9; Jefferson, Monique 2-6 0-0 4; Urbizo, Nikki 1-2 0-0 3; Edwards, Jessica 1-3 0-0 2; Nye, Kristi 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-53 17-30 67.

Halftime: Francis Marion 33 Columbus State 37

3-point goals--Francis Marion 3-14 (Dyer 2-5; Fields 1-5; Singletary, 0-2; Franks 0-1; Singleton-Bates 0-1), Columbus State 2-7 (Ferdinand 1-3; Urbizo 1-1; Jefferson 0-1; Edwards 0-1; Nye 0-1). Fouled out--None. Rebounds--Francis Marion 35 (Colbert 6; Downs 6), Columbus State 40 (Hollis 8). Assists--Francis Marion 11 (Ransom 4), Columbus State 8 (Stafford 2; Nye 2; Jefferson 2). Total fouls--Francis Marion 23, Columbus State 17. Technical fouls--None. A-289