FMU Women beat Division I Eagles 65-56

WINTHROP, SC - Senior guard Eboni Fields scored 13 points to lead three players in double figures and the Francis Marion University defense forced 33 Winthrop University turnovers as the Patriots claimed a 65-56 exhibition win over the NCAA Division I Eagles, Saturday night (Nov. 7) in women's basketball action.

Following Fields was junior Shannon Singleton-Bates with 11 points, senior Nicole Mealing with 10, and senior Precious Tucker with nine points and a team-high seven rebounds.

After leading 30-27 at halftime, FMU opened up a 36-29 advantage.  Winthrop rallied to take its only lead of the second stanza at 42-41 on a three-pointer by Shelly Hankins with 13:36 remaining.  Freshman guard Courtney Mealing answered with a three-pointer of her own to put the Patriots up 44-42. 

With the score tied at 46-46 and 7:37 left in the contest, Tucker came up with a steal and layup to put Francis Marion on top for good.  FMU would gradually pull away to an 11-point lead before settling for the nine-point victory.

Francis Marion shot only 25 percent from the floor (15-of-60), but connected on 28 of 43 free throws, including 15-of-21 over the final 20 minutes.  The Patriots took good care of the ball, committing only 15 turnovers, while converting the Winthrop miscues into 33 points. 

Shanice Cole led Winthrop with 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists.

Francis Marion will open its regular season at home on Sunday, Nov. 15, at 2 p.m. against Converse College.

11-07-09 7:07 p.m. at Winthrop Coliseum -- Rock Hill, SC
FRANCIS MARION 65, WINTHROP 56
FRANCIS MARION UNIV.
Fields, Eboni 3-9 4-4 13; Singleton-Bates, Sha 2-5 7-9 11; Mealing, Nicole
3-12 1-2 10; Tucker, Precious 3-7 3-5 9; Mealing, Courtney 2-4 2-2 7;
Colbert, Robin 0-4 6-8 6; Coleman, Dawn 1-5 2-4 4; Franks, Shana 1-6 1-2 3;
Downs, Danelle 0-3 1-4 1; Trice, Simone 0-1 1-3 1; Wilson, Tiffany 0-3 0-0
0; Dickerson, Kristen 0-0 0-0 0; Imani, Ana 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 15-60 28-43
65.
WINTHROP
COLE, Shanice 5-11 2-4 12; WHITE, Chanel 3-4 3-4 9; FANSLER, Jessica 4-9 1-2
9; RYSKA, Kathi 1-2 4-4 7; LYONS, Lacey 1-7 4-4 6; SCOTT, Sarah 1-4 2-2 4;
HANKINS, Shelly 1-2 1-4 4; COX, Ashley 1-3 0-0 2; BROWN, Tiffany 1-1 0-0 2;
HATHAWAY, Mary 0-0 1-2 1; RUBINO, Kaitlyn 0-0 0-0 0; HAMMICK, TaQuoia 0-0
0-2 0. Totals 18-43 18-28 56.
Halftime: FMU 30 WINTHROP 27
3-point goals--FMU 7-29 (Mealing, Nicole 3-10; Fields, Eboni 3-9; Mealing,
Courtney 1-2; Colbert, Robin 0-1; Coleman, Dawn 0-2; Franks, Shana 0-3;
Singleton-Bates, Sha 0-1; Wilson, Tiffany 0-1), WINTHROP 2-11 (RYSKA, Kathi
1-2; HANKINS, Shelly 1-1; FANSLER, Jessica 0-1; LYONS, Lacey 0-4; SCOTT,
Sarah 0-1; COX, Ashley 0-2). Fouled out--FMU-Singleton-Bates, Sha,
WINTHROP-HANKINS, Shelly. Rebounds--FMU 37 (Tucker, Precious 7), WINTHROP 48
(WHITE, Chanel 6; COLE, Shanice 6; SCOTT, Sarah 6). Assists--FMU 10
(Colbert, Robin 2; Mealing, Courtney 2), WINTHROP 11 (COLE, Shanice 5).
Total fouls--FMU 24, WINTHROP 28. Technical fouls--FMU-None, WINTHROP-None.