CHARLESTON, WV - The Lady Tigers (4-19) of Salem University were in action this afternoon for their second regular season contest against the Golden Falcons (14-9) from Charleston University. Earlier this year on January 10th the Tigers lost to the Golden Eagles at T. Edward Davis Gymnasium in Salem, West Virginia 53-71.

Salem's Carine Pinkney opened up the scoring for the Tigers after the team took a few possessions to settle in. Pinkney's jumper from mid-range gave the Tigers the first lead of the game and was a welcome sign after over two minutes without a score for either team. After Salem took the lead the Golden Falcons looked to respond, but they were unable to convert at the rim due to Salem's interior protector, Elena Pericic. Unfortunately for the Tigers, ball security was an issue early as they surrendered their second turnover in just four possessions, leading to an easy bucket for Charleston to tie the game. Salem quickly took the lead back with another bucket from Pinkney before the Golden Falcon offense began to click. Clarissa Francis got the engine rolling for the Charleston offense. The Falcons reeled off a 9-0 run and Francis either scored or assisted seven of those nine points. Salem was eventually able to stop the bleeding with a three-pointer from Emerson Wells who was set up with a dish courtesy of Elena Pericic. With under two minutes to play in the quarter the Falcons took a trip to the free throw line where Nia Vanzant converted both attempts. Salem was able to take a small bite out of the Falcon lead just before ending the quarter thanks to another jumper for two from Pinkney. At the end of one, the tigers found themselves down 9-13.

Early in the second quarter Emerson Wells sank her second triple of the game to get the Tigers within one point of Charleston. Following that possession on the defensive end, the Tiger defense was able to get a stop by generating a turnover which led to another three-pointer. This one from Elena Pericic who was set up by Cassandra Smith which gave the Tigers the lead at 15-13. The Golden Falcons responded after a near full group substitution with a triple of their own to reclaim the lead that the Tigers had briefly held. After nearly two minutes of scoreless ball, the Falcons sent Elena Pericic to the line for the Tigers who was able to knock down both her attempts from the charity stripe which once again put the Tigers back on top. The lead for Salem was once again brief as Charleston immediately responded with another shot from range to go back up on the Tigers. The barrage for downtown wasn't over for Charleston as they hit another trey on their next possession which helped balloon their lead to five. Anna Machytkova returned fire with a shot from mid-range to get things back under control for Salem, but the Charleston offense had already begun to gain momentum and that was proving difficult to swing back into Salem's favor. The Tigers weathered the storm for the remaining three minutes of first-half action which kept them in the game. Going into the break Salem was within striking distance down 23-27.

Charleston took the early advantage in the third quarter opening possessions. Right out of the gate, the Charleston offense was showing no signs of slowing down and the Tigers were looking for a response. The Golden Eagles began the half with an 8-2 run on the Tigers which grew the Salem deficit to six. The Tigers looked like they were beginning to regain their composure when Liliani Krause and Cassandra Smith scored at the rim on back-to-back possessions. Clarissa Francis continued to be a thorn in Salem's side. She responded to the attempted comeback with a bucket at the rim to keep the Tigers at bay. With five minutes left in the quarter, Krause became a one-woman wrecking crew for the Tigers. Creating a steal on the defensive end then taking the ball down the court and scoring it herself. This cut the Tiger deficit back to single digits, but Charleston quickly responded with a layup of their own, refusing to let Salem keep the door open. It was Salem's turn to go on a run as the quarter was winding down. Carine Pinkney and Barbara Trehub combined to score the final six points of the quarter for Salem while only allowing two more from the free throw line which helped keep the Tigers in a position where they could win. Going into the fourth quarter the Tigers were down 37-43.

The Tiger defense held strong through the first minute of fourth-quarter action, but fatigue began to set in and cracks began to show. After shutting out Charleston on their first possession the Golden Falcons were able to score at the rim. It was Nia Vanzant who was once again giving the Tigers trouble. Pinkney had an answer as she hit from deep with just over seven minutes remaining to keep Salem's hopes alive. On the defensive side of the ball Salem really struggled to get stops, allowing another run this one 7-0 which allowed the Golden Falcon lead to grow to twelve with just over half the quarter remaining. Salem dug deep and Krause came up with another big play, this time an and-one which she converted to once again get the deficit back down to single digits. Although the Tiger offense was doing their part the defense was unable to come up with an answer for the Falcons. Charleston proceeded on another run, this time 5-0 to grow their lead once more and try to put the Tigers away, but Salem refused to do so. Carine Pinkney and Cassandra Smith combined for a 5-0 run themselves which put the Tigers back down nine with just under three minutes left. In the last two minutes, Salem could not generate any offense, and in the game's closing moments, the Tigers could not overcome the home team. Salem went on to lose in regulation 49-61.

The Tigers are back on their home court this Wednesday, February 24th for their second-to-last home game of the season against the Fighting Falcons (19-5) of Fairmont State University at 5:30 pm. 

SALEM STAT LEADERS

Points: Carine Pinkney (13)

Assists: Elena Pericic (3)

Rebounds: Liliani Krause (10)

Blocks: Anna Machytkova (1)