UNIONTOWN, PA. – Coutney Collins scored 14 points to lead the Apprentice School on Wednesday morning, but a second half rally from St. Mary Of The Woods proved to be a hump the Lady Builders couldn't overcome as they lost 65-56 in the U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association National Championships.
The Lady Builders opened the game strong jumping out to a 20-8 lead on a Christina Licano with 12:37 left. A Martika Williams jumper with 12 minutes left kept the margin at 12 points with a 22-10 lead, before St. Mary Of The Woods chipped away at the lead and scored the last six points of the half to trail 32-28 on a Chelsea Weaver layup with 42 seconds left.
In the second half, the Lady Builders held a 36-33 lead on a Jasmine Pringle layup with 15:12 left. Brittany Shaner scored six straight points for St. Mary Of The Woods to put them in front to stay on a layup with 13:58 left to lead 39-36.
Tamara Davis tied the game on a 3-point play with 13:27 left at 39-all, but the Lady Builders could not overtake St. Mary Of The Woods. The 15th-seed kept the Lady Builders at arms length holding no more than a six-point lead over the last 13 minutes and no fewer than a two point advantage.
Danita Whitaker was the leading rebounder for Apprentice School with 13 boards and eight points as Denise Hamilton added eight points and five rebounds. The Lady Builders held a 48-29 advantage on the glass, including a 22-6 on the offensive end. They hit 37.9% from the floor in the game (25-of-66) while St. Mary Of The Woods hit 50% in the second half (14-of-28) and 46.4% (26-56) for the game. Shaner topped them with 21 points and six rebounds to lead three in double figures.
Apprentice School (23-3) now will face LIndenwood-Belleville in a consolation game on Thursday morning at 8 am.