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FARMVILLE, Va. – Junior Eboni Gilliam notched her third double-double performance of the season and senior Deborah Headen made two free throws in the final two seconds, as Longwood captured a 62-59 win over Gardner-Webb on senior day Saturday afternoon inside Willett Hall.

After Longwood honored its five seniors Khalilah Ali, Daeisha Brown, Headen, Kyndal Skersick and Raven Williams, the quintet stepped onto their home court together one final time to start the game. The group led an inspired effort in which the Lancers led for all but six minutes of playing time.

"Today's win was a great send off for our senior class," said Longwood head coach Bill Reinson. "Each of them contributed to the victory and winning your final home game is always special. Four years ago, Deb, Raven, Kyndal, Daeisha and Khalilah made the choice to come to Longwood before we even had a conference. They helped lay the foundation for the future of the program. We're going to really miss them."

Headen and Skersick also finished in double figures along with Gilliam. Skersick led the Lancers with eight first half points and finished with 12 for the game while going 2-for-5 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Headen finished 3-of-9 from the floor and finished with 11 points and five rebounds to post her second straight game in double figures.

"It feels great to get a win," Headen said. "Our last time on our home court, I can't think of a better way to go out."

Peaking at the right time of year, Gilliam finishes the final eight games of the regular season with two double-doubles, five performances with at least 15 points and eight rebounds. After narrowly missing a double-double in the squad's last game, Gilliam built on the performance and secured her third double-double of the season midway through the fourth quarter.

"It feels great to get another double-double and help my team win," Gilliam said. "I've had several games where I've been one point away or one rebound away, so it feels good to actually get another one."

With Longwood holding a 10-point halftime lead, the Runnin' Bulldogs made their push late in the final minutes of the third quarter. Courtesy of a 7-0 run from Brown and Parker, highlighted by a Brown layup in the final second of the quarter Gardner-Webb took its first lead of the ballgame.

However, Longwood never let Gardner-Webb take more than a one possession lead and regained the lead for the remainder of the game following a Headen put-back off a Skersick missed three-point jumper. The Lancers extended the lead to six points after back-to-back possessions with scores from Gilliam and Autumn Childress.

"We did a great job of following the game plan and made some big shots in the fourth quarter," Reinson said. "Eboni Gilliam had a monster game. She has made great strides as the season progressed. Deborah Headen and Kyndal Skersick made big plays in the second half."

The Runnin' Bulldogs got back within one point with three seconds to play following a three-point field goal, before sending Headen to the charity stripe. The senior, playing on her senior day, calmly stepped up and drilled both free throws to seal the victory.

"I knew my teammates were counting on me, so I knew I had to step up and make them," Headen said.

Coming off a career performance in Tuesday's win over Coastal Carolina, Headen continued her strong play by adding five rebounds and an assist to go along with her 11 points in 30 minutes of action.

Micaela Ellis also chipped in with eight points and four assists to mark her 17th game of the season with three-plus assists. The sophomore guard ranks among the top-five in the Big South in assists this season.

"One player who doesn't get enough recognition is Micaela Ellis," Reinson said. "She goes unnoticed because she isn't flashy, but she's our glue. Today, she played great defense, made open shots and did a terriffic job of distributing the ball. I don't know how many people in the stands noticed, but I guarantee everyone on our bench did."

Gardner-Webb's Candace Brown, Alexus Hill and Olivia Parker combined to score 49 of Gardner-Webb's 59 points in the game. That trio was led by Brown's game-high 20 points to go along with 12 rebounds, while Hill notched a 16-point game and Parker finished with 13.

Longwood wins its second straight game to close out the regular season, matching its longest win streak of the campaign. The Lancers will be the No. 10 seed, as it enters the Big South Tournament next week and will face Charleston Southern Thursday, March 5. That game is set to tip at 4:30 p.m. from Kimmel Arena in Asheville.

"Winning these last two games was a major confidence boost that we needed heading into the tournament next week in Asheville," Gilliam said.

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