Reinhardt Outlasts Golden Tigers 78-71 in AAC Play
Waleska, Georgia- In a highly competitive Appalachian Athletic Conference matchup, the Brenau basketball team came up just short against Reinhardt University 77-71 on Tuesday.
The Golden Tigers came out fast, shooting a blistering 60% from the field for an 18-13 lead. But the host Eagles (7-0 overall, 7-0 AAC) answered in the second quarter as Bethany Headrick scored in the paint to tie the game at the 5:02 mark. Brenau responded with four consecutive baskets to increase the lead back to nine points with 2:13 remaining in the half. The Eagles then closed the half on a 7-0 to cut the score to 34-32 going into intermission.
After the break, Reinhardt went on a 21-2 run to start the third quarter to jump out to a commanding 57-38 advantage. Junior Hanna Grogan hit a three pointer from the corner to start the Brenau run, while senior forward Dyiesha Brown hit a driving layup and a free throw to make the score 59-47. Back to back baskets by junior forward Tatyiana McClendon cut the lead to 61-51 at the end of the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Eagles held off the Golden Tigers for the first five minutes until sophomore guard Shaniya Gause found Grogan for a backdoor layup to cut the score to eight. Gause then found freshman guard Katherine Fourie for a three pointer on the right wing to cut the lead to five and a driving layup by McClendon made the score 70-67 with 2:35 remaining. After a missed layup by Headrick, senior guard Celine Vega found Fourie for a deep three pointer to tie the game at 70 with 1:58 remaining. However, the Eagles held off the Golden Tigers in the final two minutes to escape with the win.
"This was an incredible game of runs," said head coach Kris Stewart. "Both teams played so hard and kept trading the momentum. Credit goes to a well-coached Reinhardt squad for holding us off at the end. I am so proud of our effort and overall team play against a tough opponent."
"We are in a tough stretch of games, but we are starting to really find our stride and I am excited about our growth and potential".
Fourie led Brenau with 17 points, hitting 5-9 from three point range, while McClendon posted 15 points on 7-10 shooting. Grogan chipped in 13, while Brown added a season-high 10 points.
Reinhardt's Catherine Shope led all scorers with 28 points.
Brenau shot 47.2% (25-53) from the floor to Reinhardt's 36.2% (29-80) but were outpaced at the free throw line 54% (13-24) to 74% (17-23).
Brenau (5-4 overall, 2-3 AAC) next hosts Bryan (Tenn.) College (9-0 overall, 6-0 AAC) on Wednesday December 4th at 6:30 pm in Gainesville.