AUGUSTA, GA – Francis Marion University outscored Augusta University 21-6 over the final nine minutes to rally for a 63-52 non-conference road win, Saturday afternoon (Dec. 16) in women's basketball action.
 
Francis Marion, winners of three straight, move above the .500 mark at 5-4.  The Patriots will finally play their home opener in the newly renovated Smith University Center on Monday at 5:30 p.m. against Converse University.
 
Senior center Lauryn Taylor led FMU with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists to post her sixth double-double of the season and 33rd of her career.  She connected on 9-of-16 field goal attempts.  Taylor also passed former Patriot Briana Burgins for 18th place on the FMU career scoring list with 1,310 points and moved by Leslie Morgan and Kathy Flaten for 15th position on the all-time rebounding list with 706.
 
Junior guard Jada Richards scored a season-high 15 points – one shy of her career high.  She was a perfect 3-of-3 on shots from beyond the arc.  Junior forward Kiana Lee added a double-double of her own with 12 points and 10 rebounds in a return to near her hometown roots of North Augusta, S.C.  She also handed out five assists.
 
Yamani Paul and Tomiyah Alford led Augusta (4-4) with 11 points apiece.  The Jaguars, who were recently ranked in the Top 25, suffered their fourth consecutive defeat.
 
Paul converted a three-point play to open the fourth quarter and give the Jaguars a 46-42 lead.  Francis Marion scored the game's next 15 points, holding Augusta scoreless for over six-and-a-half minutes, to take a 57-46 advantage with 3:02 left.  Taylor scored the opening two buckets of the run to knot the score and senior point guard Aniyah Oliver drained a three-pointer from the top-of-the-key to put the Patriots ahead for good at 49-46.
 
After Augusta broke its scoring drought, a driving lay-up from Patriot senior guard MiLeia Owens and two free throws each from Oliver and Richards sealed the win for FMU.  The Patriots held Augusta to 2-of-12 shooting over the final nine minutes, while the Patriots shot 7-of-11 from the field in the final quarter.
 
The game's first quarter was a fast-paced affair.  Augusta took an early 10-5 lead, but Francis Marion responded with an 11-0 run, including a pair of three-pointers by Richards, and FMU would lead 20-19 as the horn sounded.
 
The second period saw both teams struggle to score – a combined 6-of-25 shooting – but the Jaguars made a small rally to retire to the locker room at halftime holding a 30-26 margin.
 
An 8-2 spurt by Augusta to open the third period gave the Jaguars their largest lead at 38-28.  Minutes later trailing 39-30, Taylor helped fuel a 12-4 run by Francis Marion that brought the Patriots to within 43-42 heading into the final quarter.
 
For the game, Francis Marion shot 45.3 percent from the floor, including 6-of-14 from three-point range, and was 9-of-10 at the free throw stripe.  Augusta finished shooting 35.7 percent, including 4-of-15 from deep, and was 8-of-12 at the foul line.
 
 
12/16/23 1:30 pm at Augusta, GA
FRANCIS MARION 63, AUGUSTA 52
FRANCIS MARION (5-4)
Lauryn Taylor 9-16 2-2 20; Jada Richards 5-9 2-2 15; Kiana Lee 4-8 3-4 12;
Aniyah Oliver 2-6 2-2 7; MacKenzie Feagin 2-5 0-0 5; MiLeia Owens 1-3 0-0 2;
Trinity Adams 1-3 0-0 2; Sydney Turner 0-0 0-0 0; Trinity Delaney 0-3 0-0 0.
Totals 24-53 9-10 63.
AUGUSTA (4-4)
Tomiyah Alford 3-10 5-7 11; Yamani Paul 4-6 2-3 11; Autumn Phillips 4-15 0-0
9; Kennedi Manning 3-10 1-2 7; Je'Bria Fullwood 3-5 0-0 6; Nyaneit Polk 2-7
0-0 5; Kalen Surles 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 20-56 8-12 52.
Francis Marion............   20    6   16   21  -   63
Augusta.......................   19   11   13    9  -   52
3-point goals--Francis Marion 6-14 (Jada Richards 3-3; MacKenzie Feagin 1-4;
Kiana Lee 1-3; Aniyah Oliver 1-3; Lauryn Taylor 0-1), Augusta 4-15 (Nyaneit
Polk 1-4; Autumn Phillips 1-8; Yamani Paul 1-1; Kalen Surles 1-1; Tomiyah
Alford 0-1). Fouled out--Francis Marion-None, Augusta-None.
Rebounds--Francis Marion 38 (Lauryn Taylor 15), Augusta 29 (Kennedi Manning
7; Je'Bria Fullwood 7). Assists--Francis Marion 12 (Lauryn Taylor 5; Kiana
Lee 5), Augusta 8 (Tomiyah Alford 2; Kalen Surles 2; Autumn Phillips 2).
Total fouls--Francis Marion 10, Augusta 11. Technical fouls--None. A-445