FERRUM, VA – Freshman forward Mariana Moody and sophomore guard Terriana Gray combined for 32 points on Wednesday night (Feb. 18), as Francis Marion University secured back-to-back East Division titles following a 77-66 win over Ferrum College in Conference Carolinas women's basketball action.

The Patriots improve to 17-8 overall with a 14-3 mark in league play. Francis Marion also holds an undefeated 9-0 record in divisional competition. With the win on Wednesday, FMU is guaranteed a top-four seed in the conference tournament and currently ranks first in the KPI rankings, which determines tournament seeding. Additionally, the Patriots are under consideration for the NCAA Tournament after being featured in the first release of the NCAA Southeast Regional rankings.

FMU returns to the Smith University Center for the final three games of the regular season, starting with North Greenville on Saturday, Feb. 21, at 2 p.m. Francis Marion will celebrate Senior Day prior to the game.

Moody scored a career-high 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting with eight rebounds and two steals in 26 minutes of action. Gray matched her teammate with 16 points on 6-of-14 attempts with eight rebounds, three assists, and one steal in 36 minutes. The remaining three starters for the Patriots, junior guard Uriah Jennings, sophomore guard Kiara Croskey, and sophomore guard Jordan Mintz, all scored 12 points.

Breyana Kimmons (9-18, 7-11) led all scorers for the Panthers with 16 points.

The Panthers jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the opening minutes of the first quarter behind a pair of three-pointers. Mintz sparked a 7-0 run for the Patriots after hitting a three-pointer, but Ferrum quickly countered to maintain an 11-9 advantage with 4:38 left. Croskey responded with four unanswered points to regain the lead, 13-11. The Panthers remained hot from beyond the arc and took a 17-13 edge, but Francis Marion closed out the quarter with three-straight points to trail 17-16.

In the second quarter, the Patriots quickly tied the game at 24-24, but Ferrum answered with four unanswered points to hold a 28-24 edge. Francis Marion rallied in the closing minutes to knot the game at 34-34 before scoring six of the final eight points to take a 38-36 advantage into the break.

The two sides traded baskets in the initial three minutes of the third quarter as Ferrum tied the contest at 43-43 following a three-pointer. The Patriots responded with nine unanswered points, led by Moody with four, to stretch their lead to 52-43 with three minutes to go. Mintz hit a three-pointer in the final seconds to head into the final quarter with a 55-47 advantage.

The Patriots opened up their lead in the early portion of the fourth quarter to 63-50 following a jumper by Moody. Francis Marion maintained a 10-point lead through a majority of the quarter before Gray sealed the win by scoring four-straight points in the final minute, 77-66.

FMU shot at a 43.9 clip (29-of-66) from the floor, while going 6-of-13 (46.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Ferrum finished the game shooting 43.4 percent (23-of-53) and converted 9-of-25 (36.0 percent) from three-point range. The Patriots held a 41-31 rebounding advantage with 36 points in the paint. The Panthers tallied 24 points in the paint and 17 points off the bench.