Lady Pirates Shock No. 7 Francis Marion, 92-91, In Overtime

FLORENCE, S.C. - The Armstrong Atlantic State women's basketball squad knocked off the highest-ranked home opponent in school history on Wednesday evening, traveling on the road and defeating No. 7 Francis Marion, 92-91, in overtime at the Smith University Center in Florence, S.C.

The Lady Pirates (16-10, 11-8 PBC) handed Francis Marion just its second loss of the season and did so in dramatic fashion against the regular-season PBC champion Patriots (24-2, 17-2 PBC).

AASU trailed by six at halftime, 40-34, and by as many as 13, 67-54, with just under five minutes remaining in the contest. The Lady Pirates, however, made their next six shots from the floor, the last a three-point basket by Portia Jones that brought AASU to within one point, 72-71, with 25 seconds remaining. A quick foul sent FMU's Kevina Ransom to the line, where she drained two free throws, putting the Patriots back up by three. Jones missed a layup, but the ball deflected out of bounds off of FMU, and on the ensuing inbounds, Ashley Duhart canned a three-pointer with nine seconds left to tie the score at 74-all. Ransom missed a layup as regulation ended for the host Patriots.

In the extra period, the Pirates' hot shooting continued as they hit their first three shots from the floor and ended up hitting six-of-eight shots in overtime. A layup by Lauren Hall broke an 86-all tie with 47 seconds left, then another Hall layup after two missed free throws by Shana Franks put AASU up by four, 90-86, with 20 seconds left. Lindsey Holmes made two free throws with nine seconds left to seal the victory as Ransom hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to cut the deficit to one, 92-91.

The win is the second over a nationally-ranked team for head coach Matt Schmidt and the Lady Pirates this season, and the second over a team ranked No. 7 as AASU defeated then-No. 7 USC Aiken, 63-55, back on December 6, 2008.

AASU placed six players in double figures, led by Lacey Willis' 22 points and career-high 17 rebounds. Dartayvia Thomas also added a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Portia Jones added 13 points off the bench, Lindsey Holmes chipped in 11 points, Ashley Duhart notched 10 points and Lauren Hall added 10 points off the bench.

Francis Marion was paced by Shannon Singleton-Bates' game-high 23 points. Shana Franks added 16 points and five steals, while Creshenda Singletary and Dominique Powell each collected 14 points.

The Pirates won despite committing 29 turnovers as the nation's top team in steals, Francis Marion, collected 22 on the night. AASU did the job on the boards, outrebounding the Patriots, 54-40, and also converting on 23-of-34 free throws, compared to just 12-of-19 for the home squad.

AASU wraps up the 2008-09 regular season on Saturday, February 28, with a 2:00 p.m. contest against Lander. The Lady Pirates will honor its four seniors in a pregame ceremony - Ashley Duhart, Lindsey Holmes, Kelly Verluis and Lacey Willis.