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By: Stephen Williams

MORROW, Ga. – For the first time in program history, the 24^th-ranked Columbus State University women's basketball team has won back-to-back Peach Belt Conference regular season championships after a 68-59 win at Clayton State on Wednesday. The game was played at The Loch in Morrow, Ga.
 
Columbus State wraps up the regular season with a 22-4 overall record and a 16-3 mark in league play. The Lady Cougars share the regular season crown with Lander, who also had a 16-3 conference record.
 
The championship is the sixth for the Lady Cougars in program history and wraps up the top seed out of the PBC West Division for the conference tournament, which begins this weekend. Columbus State will take on fourth-seeded Flagler on Sunday at 2 p.m. inside the Lumpkin Center.
 
"I'm really proud of this group," head coach Jonathan Norton said. "It has been an interesting year to say the least. This team has had to overcome a lot this season, but they have been so resilient."
 
Michelle Mitchell had a dominant first half scoring 19 of her game high 25 points. Ashley Asouzu picked up her sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Britteny Tatum finished with 12, her fifth straight double-digit scoring effort. Gabby Williams stuffed the stat sheet finishing with eight points, seven steals and five rebounds.
 
"Tonight started on the defensive end after a bad first quarter," Norton added. "We then committed to defense and rebounded the ball like crazy."
 
A bad first quarter it was for the Lady Cougars, as Clayton State jumped out to an early lead. Tatum scored the second of two straight buckets to bring CSU within 10-7, but the Lakers reeled off 11 unanswered points to open up a 21-7 advantage.
 
Mitchell scored the final seven points of the quarter for the Lady Cougars, but CSU still trailed 25-14 after the opening 10 minutes.
 
Columbus State began its comeback in the second quarter. Mitchell buried a three-pointer to start a 7-0 Lady Cougar run that closed the deficit to just four. The Lakers stretched the margin back to eight, but CSU scored six straight to close the half and went to the break down just 33-31.
 
In the first 20 minutes, Mitchell was a perfect 8-for-8 from the floor for her 19 points.
 
Mitchell kept it going after halftime, netting a pair of free throws to tie the game for the first time since 2-all. The Lady Cougars then took just their second lead of the game behind a 6-0 run by Williams.
 
Clayton State (21-5, 15-4 PBC) surged back in front with five straight points, but the lead would be short-lived. Another Williams layup put CSU in front 43-42 and the Lady Cougars would not relinquish the lead the rest of the way.
 
The Lakers hung around throughout a tight final 10 minutes, but Columbus State found an answer on every occasion. A three-pointer brought the Lakers within two with three minutes to play. Brea Walker then buried her only shot of the night, a three-pointer with the shot clock winding down to give the Lady Cougars some breathing room.
 
Asouzu came up big one possession later for CSU. After a Laker bucket, Asouzu soared into the paint to grab an offensive rebound and put it back in to once again make it a two-possession game.
 
From there, the Lady Cougars were able to salt the game away at the foul line on their way to a ninth consecutive victory.
 
Columbus State shot 43.3 percent (26-of-60) from the field on the night and was 14-for-16 from the free throw line. The Lady Cougars dominated on the glass, outrebounding Clayton State 49-23.
 
After a hot start, Clayton State finished the day at 42.1 percent (24-of-57) overall. The Lakers made a season high 8-of-15 from three.