By Bill Oliver
Kearney, NE – The first Elite Eight appearance for the A&M-Commerce women's basketball team was a nip and tuck affair that fell short as Clayton State (GA) defeated the Lions 60-55.
A&M-Commerce and the Lakers traded leads frequently in both halves, as the contest stayed within single digits the entire way. Midway through the first half, Clayton outscored the Lions 10-2 to take a 24-15 lead. Then A&M-Commerce scored 11 of the next 13 points to tie the game at 26. Clayton finished the half leading 29-28.
The second half started strong for the Lions, scoring the first six points to take a 34-29 advantage. The lead kept swinging like a pendulum, with 8 changes and 6 ties in the second half. The last lead for A&M-Commerce was 51-50 with 5:20 remaining. The Lakers scored 8 of the next 9 points to seal the victory.
Tradawn Short led scoring for A&M-Commerce with 18 points. Short also pulled down 5 rebounds. Britney Jordan scored 12 despite shooting 1 of 12 from 3 point range. Kanani Marshal added 9 points on 3 of 15 shooting from beyond the arc. Marshal had 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals. Katedria Mosely led Lion rebounders with 9 and chipped in with 4 points. Dawn Montgomery added 6 points.
A&M-Commerce finished the season at 28-9, and along the way broke 28 school records in the Lions first trip to the NCAA Division II tournament.