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MORROW, Ga. - The Columbus State University women's basketball team dropped their regular season finale as Clayton State came away with the 93-85 win. The Peach Belt Conference game took place inside The Loch at Clayton State.
LeeAysia Williamson led all scorers in the game with 26 points while grabbing five rebounds.
Tatum Jarvis finished with 13 points whileÂ
Kaihla Carter and
Tatiana Wayne chipped in 12 apiece.Â
"This wasn't the way we wanted to finish the regular season but hopefully we can turn this into a learning experience as we prepare for the conference tournament," head coach
Anita Howard said. "We got the start we were looking for but giving up 28 points in the second quarter washed that out and put us in an unfavorable position of having to play from behind."
The Lady Cougars jumped out in front in the first quarter thanks to a hot shooting start from the field. With CSU in front 15-14 with just over three minutes remaining, Wayne went on a 6-0 run in a 36-second stretch to put Columbus State in front 21-17. Williamson would put in another four with
Taya Gibson hitting a layup just before the buzzer to give the Lady Cougars the 27-21 lead. Â
But the second quarter backfired on CSU as Clayton State began to heat up from behind the arc as they raced back into the lead. They started the quarter on a 20-6 run in the first five minutes to open up the game. The Lakers put up 28 total points in the second quarter outscoring the Lady Cougars by 16 to go into the halftime break with a 10-point advantage.Â
Down by 15 heading to the fourth and final quarter, Williamson and Carter teamed up for the first 15 points of the quarter to try to get Columbus State back into the game. Following a layup by Jarvis and two free throws from
Saryna Carpenter, the Lady Cougars cut the deficit all the way down to six giving them a chance at the end.Â
But that would be the closest the Lady Cougars would get as Clayton State responded with a 7-2 run and to shut the door on the comeback.Â
As a team, CSU shot 42.9 percent (30-for-70) and 3-of-16 for 18.8 percent from behind the arc.Â
Columbus State will prepare to play in the PBC Tournament as they'll travel to Saint Augustine to take on Flagler in the quarterfinals. The Saints swept the season series against CSU. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m.