Box Score MILLEDGEVILLE, GA – Senior guard Tiara Gause scored a season-high 18 points, but Francis Marion University fell in its Peach Belt Conference opener 75-51 to Georgia College, Saturday afternoon (Dec. 15) in women's basketball action.
FMU (5-2, 0-1) will return home to host third-ranked USC Aiken on Monday evening at 5:30 p.m. in the squad's final contest before the Christmas break.
Gause was 8-of-20 from the floor and grabbed five rebounds. Senior guard Kristen Dickerson came off the Patriot bench to score 13 points.
Shanteona Keys led Georgia College (4-3, 2-0) with 20 points, on 7-of-10 shooting, and five rebounds.
Francis Marion committed only 11 turnovers, but the Patriots shot 31 percent from the floor, including just 3-of-18 from three-point range.
Interestingly, the teams combine to go 9-of-9 at the foul line as only 14 fouls were whistled in the game.
Georgia College tallied the game's first five points and never trailed. A three-pointer by Dickerson trimmed the early margin to 8-7, but the Bobcats responded with six straight points. The advantage would grow to 28-17 before FMU rallied to within 33-25 on a layup by Dickerson with 2:16 left in the half.
However, Georgia College connected on a trio of three-pointers to close the stanza on a 9-0 run and lead 42-25 at intermission.
The lead stretched to 54-31 early in the second half. FMU rallied and cut the deficit to 56-40 after a jumper by Gause with 12 minutes remaining. Again the Bobcats responded with seven consecutive points in a run that would expand to 17-4 and would produce an insurmountable 73-44 lead.
12/15/12 1:30 p.m. at Milledgeville, Ga.
GEORGIA COLLEGE 75, FRANCIS MARION 51
FRANCIS MARION (5-2, 0-1 PBC)
Tiara Gause 8-20 2-2 18; Kristen Dickerson 5-14 2-2 13; Erin Pinkett 3-10
0-0 8; Camille Dash 2-4 0-0 4; Kim Roach 2-4 0-0 4; Dee Gray 2-8 0-0 4; Jas.
Williams-Hayes 0-5 0-0 0; Briana Robinson 0-5 0-0 0; DeAsia Toney 0-1 0-0 0.
Totals 22-71 4-4 51.
GEORGIA COLLEGE (4-3, 2-0 PBC)
Shanteona Keys 7-10 3-3 20; Enisha Donley 9-14 0-0 18; Krysta Lewis 4-10 0-0
10; Tara Wornica 3-4 2-2 9; Thresia Elskamp 3-6 0-0 8; Belinda Schaafsma 2-4
0-0 4; Abby Slocumb 1-3 0-0 2; Sadona Floure 1-1 0-0 2; Kate Palo 1-1 0-0 2;
Shalisa Ponius 0-1 0-0 0; McKenna Rushton 0-0 0-0 0; Brandi McKinney 0-0 0-0
0; Lisa Mitchell 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 31-57 5-5 75.
Halftime: Georgia College 42 Francis Marion 25
3-point goals--Francis Marion 3-18 (Erin Pinkett 2-8; Kristen Dickerson 1-3;
Dee Gray 0-2; Briana Robinson 0-2; DeAsia Toney 0-1; Camille Dash 0-1; Tiara
Gause 0-1), Georgia College 8-14 (Shanteona Keys 3-4; Krysta Lewis 2-4;
Thresia Elskamp 2-4; Tara Wornica 1-1; Lisa Mitchell 0-1). Fouled
out--Francis Marion-None, Georgia College-None. Rebounds--Francis Marion 27
(Tiara Gause 5; Jas. Williams-Hayes 5), Georgia College 48 (Thresia Elskamp
10). Assists--Francis Marion 13 (Briana Robinson 4), Georgia College 17
(Shanteona Keys 3; Abby Slocumb 3). Total fouls--Francis Marion 8, Georgia
College 6. Technical fouls--None. A-144
