HUNTINGTON,
W.Va. --- Jesse Carrier again stepped up and hit the game winning shot for the
second consecutive game of the Fifth Third Classic to give ULM a two-point
victory, 69-67, over Marshall in the championship game Saturday afternoon inside
the Cam Henderson Center in Huntington, W.Va.
“This
is a huge win for our team,” head coach Mona Martin said. “We battled adversity
throughout the second half and prevailed down the stretch.”
ULM
(3-1) showed it could handle pressure for the second consecutive game and ended
with another exciting flurry of Carrier 3-point shots. Holding a one-point
advantage with 2:58 remaining in the second half, the Warhawks were able to
hold off a charging Marshall squad.
Carrier
again provided the winning blow and knocked down a 3-point shot in the final seconds
on her way to earning tournament Most Valuable Player. In Friday's 59-57 win
over Morgan State, the Sulphur, La., native knocked down the game winner with
eight seconds remaining.
Lottie
Moore was also named to the all-tournament team.
Carrier
finished with a career-high 19 points including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc for
ULM. She also added five rebounds and a pair of assists. Moore scored three
points, grabbed four rebounds and added five assists.
Marshall
(3-1) was led by Tynikki Crook's game-high 20 points along with eight rebounds.
Alyssa Hammond added 19 points of her own including 11-of-12 from the free
throw line.
ULM
traded buckets with Marshall for most of the first half before falling behind
by as many as eight, 15-7, with 10:34 remaining. The Warhawks rallied back
behind the play of Shannon Davis who scored a pair of layups to lead a 10-3
Warhawk rally, 20-20, with a little under six minutes in the half.
The
Thundering Herd then tried a trapping defense but Carrier found the open holes
and knocked down a pair of 3-point shots to cap an 8-3 Warhawk run, 28-23.
Marshall
eventually chipped away at the ULM lead and tied the score, 33-33, to enter
halftime.
Carrier
led the Warhawks at halftime with eight points, including 2-of-3 from behind
the arc. Elizabeth Torres chipped in six points off two 3-pointers.
“Jesse
played big for us this weekend,” Martin said. “It is a big relief knowing that
we can count on her for a big shot when we need it.”
The
Warhawks opened the second half with an 8-3 run and made it 41-36 before four
minutes had expired off the clock. A variety of jumpers and a pair of Ashley
Wallis free throws paced the run.
Three
minutes later Moore was called for her fourth foul and Portia Tucker entered
the game. Tucker scored four quick points and helped the Warhawks increase
their six-point lead from 47-41, to as many as 11-points with 10:32 on the
clock.
With
ULM holding a double-digit lead for nearly four minutes, the Thundering Herd
would not go down easy. Marshall answered back and cut the ULM lead to as
little as three, 62-59, before the excitement started.
Leading
62-59, Marshall's Tania Walter's hit a layup to cut the ULM lead to one, 62-61.
Two possessions later Carrier stepped up and knocked down a crucial 3-point
shot to put the Warhawks ahead, 65-61.
Marshall's
Angelica Harris answered back 23 seconds later with a 3-pointer and again cut
the ULM lead to one, 65-64. Harris would then make a free throw and tie the
game at 65-65 before Carrier sunk the game-winning 3-point shot with 30 seconds
on the clock.
ULM begins its home portion of the 2008-09
schedule against Southern Miss Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum
as part of a doubleheader with the Warhawk men's team.
