Clemson Falls To Western Carolina, 62-53, In Sunday Women’s Basketball Action

Nov. 11, 2007

CLEMSON, SC – Clemson sophomore Lele Hardy recorded her second straight double-double and Christy Brown scored a team-best 14 points, but the Lady Tigers fell to Western Carolina, 62-53, on Sunday afternoon at Littlejohn Coliseum.

Clemson, who played its second straight game without injured senior D’Lesha Lloyd, fell to 1-1 on the year, while the Catamounts improved to 2-0.

The Lady Tigers will hope to have a healthy Lloyd for their next contest, as they will play their third game in six days with the Duquesne Dukes in town on Wednesday, Nov. 14.

Hardy set a career high with 12 points in the effort to go along with her 10 points. She had totaled 10 points and 10 rebounds in Clemson’s season opening victory over Maine on Friday. The Spartanburg, SC native also tallied three steals, two blocked shots and a team-best four assists.

Brown played 35 minutes in the game, including all 20 of the first half. She was 7-for-15 from the field and recorded four rebounds and two assists against Western Carolina.

Rookie Kirstyn Wright also posted double-figures for Head Coach Cristy McKinney’s squad, totaling 10 on 4-for-10 shooting while collecting six boards. Fellow freshman Whitney Hood had a good day on the glass, pulling down 10 including six offense rebounds.

The Catamounts had two double-double performers on Sunday afternoon while Monique Dawson led the team with 17 points. Chevon Keith posted a game-high 16 rebounds and scored 10 points, and Brooke Johnson had 11 points and 10 boards.

Hardy made the game’s first field goal at the 18:02 mark and the Lady Tigers were ahead for the majority of an opening period plagued by turnovers by both teams. A Wright three-pointer with 7:05 remaining put Clemson on top at 17-15 and sparked a 12-1 run by the Lady Tigers. Wright added another basket during the stretch and Hardy totaled five points in the run.

After Hardy’s three-point shot at the 4:23 mark put Clemson ahead, 26-16, Catamount Head Coach Kelley Harper called timeout and her team responded with a 9-2 run to cut the lead to 28-25 at the break.

Western Carolina tied the game at 33-33 with 14:15 remaining and then took the lead at the 11:22 point on a lay-up by Dawson. The margin continued to grow as the Lady Tigers failed to convert opportunities and the Catamounts claimed the victory by a final of 62-53.