HICKORY, N.C. -- Fourth-seeded Tusculum rewrote its history books Sunday afternoon as the Lady Pioneers won their first-ever Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament title.
Tusculum defeated second-seeded Newberry 67-55 score at Catawba Valley Community College Multipurpose Complex to earn the SAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament.
"We're excited about the opportunity to advance and keep playing," said Tusculum coach Adell Harris. "I think we're a team that's getting better. We're peaking at the right time. These kids were ready to go. From the first horn, I knew they were ready. We were a team on a mission."
Tusculum (20-9) claimed the victory thanks in large part to the long-distance shooting of Kendal Baxter. The freshman made five NBA-range treys in the final 12 minutes of the game, allowing Tusculum to keep Newberry at bay.
Baxter finished with 17 points to lead all scorers. Tournament MVP Jasmine Gunn scored 15 points while Jasmine Parker scored 11 points and dished out six assists. Kat Spears earned a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Gunn, Spears and Catherine Hintz each earned a spot on the all-tournament team.
Newberry (21-8) was led by all-tournament selection Anita Bulcher, who scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds, snapping a streak of 11 consecutive double-doubles.
Tusculum connected on its first five field goal attempts and went 8-of-11 in the game opening run.
Newberry was able to cut the lead to as few as eight points in the first half, but a late 7-1 Pioneers run helped give Tusculum a 37-26 halftime lead.
The championship game is scheduled to be replayed on CSS at noon on Tuesday, March 16.
On Saturday in the semifinals, Gunn scored 27 to lead the Lady Pioneers to a 77-63 win over top-seeded and No. 24-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne.
Tusculum will be the No. 7 seed in the Southeast Regional for the NCAA Tournament hosted by Lander University in Greenwood, S.C.
The Lady Pioneers will open first round action Friday against second-seeded Clayton State University (24-6).
TUSCULUM (20-9): Baxter 6-8 0-0 17; Gunn 5-15 5-7 15; Parker 4-10 3-4 11; Spears 5-12 1-1 11; Hintz 3-9 1-2 7; Oliver 1-3 1-2 4; Hicks 0-2 2-2 2; Shephard 0-0 0-0 0; Moise 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-59 13-18 67.
NEWBERRY (21-8): Bulcher,Anita 5-9 6-6 16; Browne 5-10 0-0 11; Watson 4-11 1-2 9; McKinney 4-12 0-0 9; Bearzatto 2-8 2-2 6; Johnson 1-5 0-0 2; Creet 1-3 0-1 2; Henderson 0-1 0-0 0; Ward 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-59 9-11 55.
Halftime: Tusculum 37, Newberry 26
3-point goals--Tusculum 6-11 (Baxter 5-7; Oliver 1-3; Hicks 0-1), Newberry 2-12 (McKinney 1-7; Browne 1-3; Bearzatto 0-1; Henderson 0-1). Rebounds--Tusculum 39 (Spears 12), Newberry 37 (Watson 8). Assists--Tusculum 12 (Parker 6), Newberry 14 (Bearzatto 4). Total fouls--Tusculum 10, Newberry 19.
