GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – No. 24-ranked Columbus State University Women's Basketball continued with the Jersey Mike's Regional Challenge hosted by Tusculum (Tenn.) on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Lady Cougars (2-0) challenged the Pioneers (0-2) in their home venue on Sunday, taking down the hosts in a 97-84 victory.
 
First Quarter
 
Jasmine Rai Stevens put the Lady Cougars on the board first with a three-pointer which was the first of an 11-2 run to open the game. The Pioneers took a couple of minutes off the clock to pull within five points in response.
 
Columbus State would go on a tear and light it up with a 17-4 run to lead by 18 points with less than two minutes to play. Both teams finished the first quarter with six points each as CSU closed with a 34-16 lead. The Lady Cougars shot for 57.9% (11-of-19) from the field, 61.5% (8-of-13) from three and 66.7% (4-of-6) from the foul line.
 
Second Quarter
 
In the second quarter, both teams produced 18 points apiece. Letiya Reeves opened the period with a jumper in the paint to give CSU a 20-point cushion. After some back-and-forth play, Tusculum would slowly chip away at their deficit with a 14-0 run that covered roughly five minutes of action.
 
The Pioneers managed to pull the deficit under double figures, down 41-34 with 2:29 to play. Columbus would go on to close the quarter out with an 11-0 run of their own led by a pair of treys from Stevens as well as a three from Rawls and a pair of free throws from Reeves.
 
CSU led 52-34 at the half after shooting for 24% (6-of-25) from the field, 36.4% (4-of-11) from three and 50% (2-of-4) from the foul line in the second quarter. At the intermission, Rawls led with 14 points followed by 12 from Stevens who went a perfect 4-of-4 from beyond the arc.
 
Third Quarter
 
Columbus State's first made baskets of the third quarter came from beyond the arc and out of the hands of Bre'Lyn Snipes and Reeves, moving the lead to 22 points. Both teams traded blows over the next few minutes, yet CSU continued to hold on to a commanding lead.
 
After capturing a lead of 72-46 with 4:30 to play, Columbus State battled with the Pioneers and claimed an 81-56 lead with 10 minutes remaining in regulation. CSU led the period by outscoring TU 29-22.
 
Fourth Quarter
 
Tusculum came out of the third quarter swinging hard, landing a nine-point blow over the course of two minutes. The Lady Cougars quickly responded with threes from Kristyn Goshay and Snipes alongside a layup from Rawls to take an 89-65 advantage with seven minutes to play.
 
The Pioneers took another solid chunk out of their deficit within the following couple of minutes with a 7-0 run and responded to Rawls' four-point surge with another seven points to move to a 93-81 ball game with 90 seconds to play. Fortunately for CSU, time was not in favor of the hosts as the game would go on to finish 97-84.
 
Inside the Numbers

• Columbus State finished shooting 37.8% (34-of-90) from the field, 43.2% (19-of-44) from three, and 58.8% (10-of-17) from the foul line.
• Rawls led with 23 points and seven rebounds and three assists.
• Reeves followed with 17 points and three steals.
• Stevens tallied 16 points, shooting 4-of-5 from three.
• Snipes totaled 13 points and a team-leading five steals.
• Aaliyah Ferrell rounded out the Lady Cougars in double figures with 11 points.
• As a team, CSU finished with 18 steals on 35 Tusculum turnovers.
• The Pioneers led the numbers off the glass with a 51-39 advantage in rebounds.
• Columbus State moves to 3-1 all-time over Tusculum.
• The Lady Cougars go 2-0 on opening weekend for the second-straight season.

Up Next

• Columbus State will hit the road on Wednesday, Nov. 13 for a 5:30 p.m. ET tip at Francis Marion (S.C.) in Florence, S.C.