Ogburn Leads Lady Eagles Past Brewton-Parker, 96-44, in Season Opener
11/14/2009 4:23:00 AM | Women's Basketball
STATESBORO, GA – The Georgia Southern women's basketball team opened the 2009-2010 season with a 96-44 victory over Brewton-Parker Friday night (November 13) in Hanner Fieldhouse. The win marked the 11th straight season opening win for the Lady Eagles. J'Lisia Ogburn led with a game-high 18 points to mark a career high and earn her fourth career double-double pulling down 10 boards
Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) went 8-of-13 from the floor to lead both teams with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Making her return to the court for the first time since December, Carolyn Whitney (Duluth, Ga.) displayed a promising start to her senior campaign, contributing 14 points, two assists and one steal in the winning effort. Meanwhile, appearing in a Lady Eagle uniform for the first time, freshman Kayla Dayton (Monroe, N.C.) drained 12 points with one three-pointer to jumpstart her collegiate career.
“We were extremely happy to give plenty of our team playing time tonight and see what we could do in competition. As a coaching staff, we were pleased to have the opportunity to see as many of our players play as we did,” said head coach Rusty Cram. “I was very pleased with J'Lisia [Ogburn] and Carolyn [Whitney] and their performance tonight.”
Georgia Southern outscored Brewton-Parker at half 49-27, shooting 47.6 percent to the Barons' 29.6 percent. Hitting 20 field goals to Brewton-Parker's eight in the first half, the Lady Eagles maintained momentum in the second half, shooting 51.4 percent to come away with a 52-point margin of victory.
Georgia Southern picked up its first points of the game when Jessica Geiger (Stone Mountain, Ga.) took a trip to the charity strip within the first minute of play. Geiger drained both free throws as Whitney hit a jumper to give Georgia Southern a 4-0 lead.
The Lady Eagles seized control of the game in the first half, pulling away with a 15-6 lead following Whitney's fourth field goal of the half. Krista Tate (Atlanta, Ga.) made a jumper with just over 11 minutes of play remaining in the half to give Georgia Southern a 29-11 lead and spark a 10-0 run by Georgia Southern as it gained the biggest lead of the half, 37-11.
Brewton-Parker pulled to within 17 points, 39-22, before Georgia Southern closed out the opening stanza with a 22-point lead, 49-27.
Returning from the break, Crystal Nwaoporo hit a jumper for Brewton-Parker before the Lady Eagles put together a 9-0 run to hold a 60-29 lead. Over the next 11 minutes, Georgia Southern added 26 points from nine different Lady Eagles, including three-pointers from Jamie Navarro (Naples, Fla.) and Meredyth Frye (Fredericksburg, Va.), to capture an 86-39 lead, a 47-point difference. Georgia Southern continued the strong defense, relenting only five points over the final five-and-a-half minutes of play to close out a 96-44 season opening victory.
“We made a lot of substitutions tonight to give as many people a chance to play as possible and that affected our rhythm a little bit. But overall, it was a good game and a great opportunity for us to see where we are,” said Cram.
Three Barons scored in double digits on the evening. Taking the lead for Brewton-Parker, Nwaoporo owned 11 points in the game and nine rebounds. Zaneta Howard and Ashauntae Bussey each added 10 points. The Barons were held to a 23.7 shooting efficiency, making contact on only 14 buckets.
Georgia Southern returns to the court facing preseason ranked No.6 Duke on Thursday, November 19. Tipoff in Cameron Indoor Stadium is slated for 7 p.m.
Ogburn (Dublin, Ga.) went 8-of-13 from the floor to lead both teams with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Making her return to the court for the first time since December, Carolyn Whitney (Duluth, Ga.) displayed a promising start to her senior campaign, contributing 14 points, two assists and one steal in the winning effort. Meanwhile, appearing in a Lady Eagle uniform for the first time, freshman Kayla Dayton (Monroe, N.C.) drained 12 points with one three-pointer to jumpstart her collegiate career.
“We were extremely happy to give plenty of our team playing time tonight and see what we could do in competition. As a coaching staff, we were pleased to have the opportunity to see as many of our players play as we did,” said head coach Rusty Cram. “I was very pleased with J'Lisia [Ogburn] and Carolyn [Whitney] and their performance tonight.”
Georgia Southern outscored Brewton-Parker at half 49-27, shooting 47.6 percent to the Barons' 29.6 percent. Hitting 20 field goals to Brewton-Parker's eight in the first half, the Lady Eagles maintained momentum in the second half, shooting 51.4 percent to come away with a 52-point margin of victory.
Georgia Southern picked up its first points of the game when Jessica Geiger (Stone Mountain, Ga.) took a trip to the charity strip within the first minute of play. Geiger drained both free throws as Whitney hit a jumper to give Georgia Southern a 4-0 lead.
The Lady Eagles seized control of the game in the first half, pulling away with a 15-6 lead following Whitney's fourth field goal of the half. Krista Tate (Atlanta, Ga.) made a jumper with just over 11 minutes of play remaining in the half to give Georgia Southern a 29-11 lead and spark a 10-0 run by Georgia Southern as it gained the biggest lead of the half, 37-11.
Brewton-Parker pulled to within 17 points, 39-22, before Georgia Southern closed out the opening stanza with a 22-point lead, 49-27.
Returning from the break, Crystal Nwaoporo hit a jumper for Brewton-Parker before the Lady Eagles put together a 9-0 run to hold a 60-29 lead. Over the next 11 minutes, Georgia Southern added 26 points from nine different Lady Eagles, including three-pointers from Jamie Navarro (Naples, Fla.) and Meredyth Frye (Fredericksburg, Va.), to capture an 86-39 lead, a 47-point difference. Georgia Southern continued the strong defense, relenting only five points over the final five-and-a-half minutes of play to close out a 96-44 season opening victory.
“We made a lot of substitutions tonight to give as many people a chance to play as possible and that affected our rhythm a little bit. But overall, it was a good game and a great opportunity for us to see where we are,” said Cram.
Three Barons scored in double digits on the evening. Taking the lead for Brewton-Parker, Nwaoporo owned 11 points in the game and nine rebounds. Zaneta Howard and Ashauntae Bussey each added 10 points. The Barons were held to a 23.7 shooting efficiency, making contact on only 14 buckets.
Georgia Southern returns to the court facing preseason ranked No.6 Duke on Thursday, November 19. Tipoff in Cameron Indoor Stadium is slated for 7 p.m.
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