FARMVILLE, Va. – Saturday evening Longwood women's basketball junior Akila Smith broke the 101-year-old program's all-time blocks record.
But she couldn't block them all.
Powered by 17 points from Maleia Bracone, five double-digit scorers and a runaway fourth quarter, Presbyterian spoiled a record-breaking night for Longwood's do-it-all junior forward and dealt the Lancers a 77-56 loss in Willett Hall.
Smith entered the game in need of just one block to break the record and recorded four for good measure, including three in a row in a span of five seconds in the third quarter. However, the 5-11 forward fouled out with 6:33 to play and Longwood trailing 52-49, and Presbyterian took advantage of her absence with a game-ending 25-7 run.
Tionna Carter scored eight of her 14 points during that rally to join Bracone, Trinity Johnson (13 points), Nyah Willis (11) and Jade Compton (11) in double-digit scoring as the Blue Hose avenged Longwood's 73-66 comeback win in the first meeting Friday night and snapped an eight game home winning streak for Longwood, giving them their first loss in Willett Hall in conference play.
"I think when you look at the final score, you have to know how we played in the fourth quarter," said Longwood head coach Rebecca Tillett. "They made quite a run in the fourth, and we are fighters. We are never going to say, 'They made a run, let's see how it goes,' we are going to fight back. To fight back, you have to be aggressive and take some risks, but they did a good job on the free throw line down the stretch to extend the lead and made some good plays."
Smith finished with 16 points for the Lancers, while Kyla McMakin scored 14 and Adriana Shipp finished with 10. However, shooting woes doomed the Lancers down the stretch, as Longwood shot 2-of-25 from three-point range and missed their final 10 in the fourth quarter. The Lancers also turned the ball over an uncharacteristic 20 times on Saturday night, as they rank best in the Big South with just 14.4 turnovers per game.
"They were all in the passing lanes forcing turnovers," added Tillett. "We don't turn the ball over like that, so I thought they did a great job."
Prior to the big fourth quarter by the Blue Hose in which they outscored Longwood 30-10, the first three quarters were played tightly contested, featuring seven lead changes and four ties. Trailing by just one to start the fourth quarter, the Lancers regained the lead early in the final frame as Tra'Dayja Smith's layup put Longwood ahead 48-47 with 9:40 remaining.
However, Presbyterian's Georgia Stockton hit a pivotal three to regain the lead for the Blue Hose, 52-49 before Carter drew Akila Smith's fifth foul with 6:33 to play, sparking the game-clinching run by Presbyterian. The Blue Hose, who rank third in the Big South in free-throw percentage (.713), drained 19-of-20 attempts in the final ten minutes, powering them to their seventh conference victory of the season.
"Six of our next games are on the road, so we are going to have to focus," added Tillett. "We have one more chance to play at home prior to the conference tournament if we do what we are supposed to do the rest of the way, and we are going to have to be good on the road, practice hard, and stay ready. I think this was the first time that fatigue was a factor for us and we certainly missed Brooke [Anya] today, so I think we need some depth and a little less fatigue."
Up next for the Lancers is a trip to Hampton, Va. for a back-to-back pair with Hampton from Friday, Feb. 5 to Saturday, Feb. 6. Friday's contest tips off at 5 p.m., and both games will stream live on ESPN+.
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