The Lady Rattlers gained momentum against tough conference opponents with two key victories on the road in their journey for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title.
The Lady Rattlers had a one-point victory on Saturday against North Carolina Central and 79 to 65 double-digit victories in Orangeburg, S.C. against South Carolina State.
Senior guard Tameka McKelton, the MEAC’s leading scorer, scored 22 points in Monday’s win. McKelton and three other Lady Rattlers finished with double digit scoring.
“The team is understanding moving without the ball and not being stagnant on offense,” said head coach LaDawn Gibson.
In the first half, the Lady Rattlers shot 47 percent from the field and had a 12-point halftime lead. The offensive productivity was the same in the second half with 39 more points.
“We try to shoot 47% and above and take quality shots, you don’t want to shoot the ball just to shoot it,” Gibson said.
Senior guard, Myeshia Simms had ten points and eight assists against the Bulldogs.
The Rattlers had a season high 21 assists. Good ball distribution and shot selection gave the Rattlers a high field goal percentage throughout the game.
“We took what the defense gave us and were patient on offense and we took our time,” said Senior Forward Qiana Donald.
Senior Forward Antonia Bennett finished with 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. She also added four blocks to the stat sheet.
The Lady Rattler’s offensive and defensive contributions from all players sparked the double-digit victory.
The team was pouring in baskets and passing the ball fluidly, which made offensive possessions smooth and efficient. The Rattlers will use this offensive momentum to deal quick jabs and body shots to the side in the early going against Morgan State.
The Lady Rattlers will battle Morgan State in the Multipurpose center at 5:30 p.m. Morgan State has a record of 6-3 and is second place in the conference. The Lady Rattlers hope to move into a tie for second place with a win on Saturday.
With only 9 games left on the schedule, all of them are crucial conference games towards the end of the season.
The Lady Rattlers are only 2 games out of first place. Hampton leads the MEAC conference with an 8-1 record. The Lady Rattlers face Hampton again on Feb. 21 in what could be the battle for the conference title.