Women's Basketball Falls At Virginia Union 83-67

Senior Ebony Smith Paces The Lancers With 15 Points And Six Rebounds

January 15, 2004

RICHMOND, Va. – Longwood University dropped an 83-67 collegiate women’s basketball decision at Virginia Union Thursday night in Richmond. With the loss, the Lancers fall to 11-7 on the season, while the Panthers improve to 12-2 overall. Longwood will return to action Jan. 31, as the Lancers travel to Washington D.C. to face the University of the District of Columbia.

At Virginia Union, the two teams stayed evenly matched throughout the first half, tying the game seven times and changing the advantage four times. Longwood took its first lead (20-19) of the game at the six-minute mark on a field goal from junior Marita Meldere/Rujiena, Latvia (Lynchburg Christian), but quickly relinquished its margin after the host school hit a pair of free throws. Both schools traded baskets for the remainder of the half until the Panthers took the lead with 2:14 left to enter the intermission with a 37-32 advantage. After the break, Virginia Union opened the half where it left off and never relinquished its advantage. The Panthers stretched their margin by as many as 18 points in the second stanza to close out the contest with a decisive home win.

Smith paced Longwood with her team-high 15 points, including one three-pointer, while grabbing six rebounds. Three other Lancers registered double-digits, including Meldere, who posted 12 points and eight boards, while sophomore Amber Mason/Virginia Beach (Princess Anne) and freshman Ashleigh Hollman/Centreville (Westfield) each contributed 10 points. Junior transfer Catherine Dunn/Aberdeen, N.J. (St. John Vianney) led the Lancers on the glass, pulling down a team-best 10 rebounds. Longwood shot 40.3 percent from the floor on 25-for-62 shooting, 21.1 percent on 4-for-19 from three-point territory, and 65.0 percent on 13-for-20 from the line.

Pria Stellmacher led the Panthers with her 32 points, while Danielle Hoggard and Shaaron Atkins each contributed 14 and 10 points, respectively. Virginia Union shot 42.9 percent (30-70) from the floor, 27.3 percent (3-11) from beyond the arc, and 80.0 percent (20-25) at the line.

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