MARYVILLE, Tenn. -- Saturday afternoon, the Lady Scots traveled up north to face off against a soon to be conference rival, Maryville College. Last year, the two teams played during Christmas break, and Maryville had the advantage through the whole game which led to an 84-65 victory. Maryville has been the team to beat in the Great South Athletic Conference (GSAC) for the better half of the past decade. Off a close up tempo game, the young Lady Scots were eager to get a second game under their belt and perhaps play the role of under dog.
From the opening tip, it was clear that this was a different game from what the Lady Scots had played on Tuesday. Instead of the run and gun style of Sewanee, this game was more half court oriented. Although small in stature, the Lady Scots stood tall to begin the game. Jessie Blankenship, the tallest Lady Scot, stood eye to eye with Maryville's great post players and had 2 blocks in the first minute and a half. This effort was matched with offensive sets run well and efficiently, forcing Maryville to make a lay-up with 13:46 to tie the score at 12.
But the Lady Scots, who were matching up quite nicely against a better team, seemed to feel out of place all of the sudden with the realization of the situation. This realization, coupled with full court pressure applied by Maryville, swung the momentum quickly. In just under a four minute stretch, Maryville had put together a 19-0 run on the Lady Scots, pushing the once tied score to 29-12. With their backs against the wall and with pressure mounting fast, Covenant had to fight and scrap for points of any kind. Maryville, like a shark smelling blood in the water, became even more aggressive on every offensive possession as the home Lady Scots looked for lay-ups and easy baskets and found them easily on many occasions. As the half ended, it was shocking to see the once tied and evenly played game out of hand as the scoreboard read 53-28 in Maryville's favor.
There were a couple of bright spots offensively for the Lady Scots though. Junior Margaret Cross was 5-5 from behind the 3-point arc, leading both teams in scoring with 15 points. Freshman Jessie Blankenship was also having a solid game as she was 4-4 from the floor, grabbed 5 rebounds and had 2 blocks.
As the Lady Scots took the court for the second half, Maryville had played someone who was not in the official book, and Covenant got to shoot 2 technical free throws, perhaps the easiest points of the night for the Lady Scots. Junior Margaret Cross hit both, and before the half had even started, the Lady Scots had scored 2 points. But with a lead of 23, Maryville continued to have the upper hand, being the more aggressive team for the entire second half. It was clear to see how Maryville has dominated the GSAC as they continued to score at their leisure. As the final buzzer sounded the scoreboard read 100-54 in favor of Maryville.
Junior Margaret Cross finished the game with 20 points to lead all scorers. Freshman Jessie Blankenship finished with 11 points and 8 rebounds. Junior Christine Core hit all 5 of her free throws, giving her 9 points, and she handed out a team high 4 assists. The Lady Scots shot 7-16 behind the 3-point line (43.8%). In the last 2 full seasons, they had shot the same or better only three times.
"Maryville is the class of the Great South Conference and they proved that today," commented head coach Corey Mullins after the game. "They were stronger and more focused in every phase of the game. I feel as though we came out and played with some timidity to start, and that opened up the gates for Maryville to make a run in the first half. My hope is that on Monday when we get back on the practice floor, this game will serve as a motivation for us to pay attention to the details of our defensive philosophy and come together as a team."
The Lady Scots welcome Berry College to campus as they look to get their first win in their season home opener Tuesday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00pm.
