Salisbury, N.C. – The 17th-ranked Catawba women's basketball team flexed both their offensive and defensive muscles versus Limestone at Goodman Arena on Wednesday night, rolling over the Saints to the tune of an 80-47 victory -- their 31st consecutive home win -- to improve to 19-4 overall and 14-3 in the South Atlantic Conference.
- Catawba held Limestone to just 17-45 from the floor, while converting 27-65 of their shots in return. Along with having 10 more makes, Catawba also led in three-point buckets, 11-26 to 5-16, and in free throws, 15-21 to 8-14
- Catawba was stellar defensively, forcing 28 turnovers and cashing them in for 29 points while giving the ball away just 14 times themselves for 15 points
- On the glass, Catawba pulled down 41 rebounds to 30 for Limestone, with the second-chance margin being 14-5 in favor of Catawba
- On the break, Catawba dominated with a 16-1 advantage over the Saints
- Bench points were another huge factor, with Catawba's reserves pouring in 29 points compared to 13 from Limestone
- Lyrik Thorne paced all players with 31 points on an efficient 10-19 from the floor, including a 4-8 mark from beyond the arc in her fourth 30-point game of the year. Nala Bakerwas the only other Catawba player in double figures with 12 points on 4-6 shooting
- Thorne also led Catawba in assists, with four. Janiya Downsrecorded three
- Downs led the team in rebounds with six in a team effort; Janiya Foskey and Thorne had five, and Sara McIntosh finished with four
- Thorne shone defensively as well, leading all players in steals with four. Downs, Foskey, McIntosh, and Mary Spryall had two steals as well
- In a defensive battle from the start, it took just over two minutes for either team to get on the board. Kalisha Hill opened the scoring for Limestone with a pair of free throws at the 7:47 mark, answered quickly by Thorne with a layup on Catawba's following possession
- Hill and Thorne would score the only points for their respective teams until the 3:18 mark; as Hill added a layup and Thorne scored all seven of Catawba's opening points in return
- An and-one from Limestone's Destiny Jackson tied the game at 7-7 with just over three minutes left in the quarter and sparked a 9-0 Saints run, with Brynn Tabeling canning a pair of threes to make it 13-7 Limestone with 1:58 to go
- Jada Porter was able to cut into the offensive run by the Saints with a three of her own before the end of the quarter, but a 12-3 run from Limestone meant they headed to the first intermission up 15-10
- Whatever Catawba Head Coach Terence McCutcheon told his team at the break resonated, as the No. 17 ranked home side came out firing in what would become a dominant showing in the second quarter
- Catawba erupted for a 24-4 run that would become a 27-8 showing on the quarter overall, scoring eight unanswered points out of the break before Limestone could score any of their own
- Downs and Thorne each got layups to fall, followed by four straight points from Baker to make it 18-15 Catawba with 6:31 to go, and Catawba wouldn't trail again from there
- After Reagan Kargo scored Limestone's first points of the quarter with a layup at the 5:32 mark, Catawba scored 10 unanswered points, punctuated by threes from Baker and Spry to put Catawba ahead by 11, 28-17, before the Saints scored again
- Free throws from Downs and Thorne, who was fouled on a pair of three-point attempts, further extended the lead. Mazie Helpman's three with :50 seconds to go put Catawba up 15, their biggest lead of the half, and they would head to the break surging ahead by a score of 37-23
- Catawba wasn't done there, not losing a step from their lights-out second quarter as Thorne and Porter combined for a trio of makes from beyond the arc in a 9-3 Catawba run to make it a 20-point game, 46-26, at the 7:43 mark
- Hill looked to bring the Saints back into the game with eight straight for Limestone, cutting the lead to 36-49 with 4:21 to go, but Catawba had the answer in the form of a 7-2 run to close out the quarter
- A layup from Hill would be the only Limestone points scored in the final 4:21 of the period. Meanwhile, Spry, Downs, and McIntosh each got layups to fall to give Catawba an 18-point cushion heading into the final quarter, 56-38
- Once again, Catawba wasn't done coming out of the break. After a 7-2 run to close out the third quarter, the home side rang up a 10-0 run led by five points from Baker to make it 66-41 with 6:15 left in the game
- Limestone would be held scoreless by a buzzing Catawba defense for just over eight minutes, with a layup from Megan Watson with 6:04 to go their first basket since the 4:21 mark of the third quarter
- Even that would quickly be answered by a 9-0 Catawba run spurred by four straight points from Foskey, with an and-one from Brooklyn Ingram making it 75-43 with 2:57 to go
- Catawba would outscore Limestone 24-9 during the fourth quarter to leave no doubt, with Ingram putting the exclamation point on the game with a personal outburst for Catawba's last nine points, tying the Saints team over the final frame for a final score of 80-47
- The Catawba Indians are back in action on Saturday, as they travel to Mars Hill in their final SAC road game of the season. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
