MURFREESBORO, N.C. – The Chowan Women's Basketball team handed regionally ranked Virginia State their second straight loss, 65-61, in a crucial CIAA Northern Division contest at home on Saturday.

THE BASICS

FINAL | #9 Chowan 65, #6 Virginia State 61 (regional rankings)

RECORDS | Chowan 14-3 (6-1), Virginia State 15-2 (5-2)

LOCATION | Murfreesboro, N.C. (Helms Center)

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

Mariah Coker led the Hawks with 21 points and seven assists on the afternoon.  Chantel Roberts continued to clean up the glass with another double-double scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Danielle Weldon and Jordan Pettaway chipped in with nine points each.  Dhyamond Crenshaw finished with seven points.  Joanne Williams hauled in 10 rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter:

Chowan started the contest with a 2-0 lead after an administrative technical foul on Virginia State.  Chantel Roberts pushed the lead to 8-2 nailing back-to-back triples.

Mariah Coker and Dhyamond Crenshaw aided the scoring with a three and a jumper to lead 13-7 midway through the opening stanza.

Danielle Weldon added five points to keep the Hawks ahead before the Trojans closed the gap to 19-18.  Chantel Roberts notched a layup to end the quarter up 21-18.

Second Quarter:

Mariah Coker scored two buckets early and Dhyamond Crenshaw netted a pair from the stripe to keep the Hawks in the lead 26-22.  Jordan Pettaway knocked down a trey from the wing midway through the quarter to give the Hawks a 30-24 advantage.

Following a Mariah Coker three, Virginia State went on a 10-2 run to take a two point lead, 37-35, with 46 seconds left in the half.  Coker knotted up the contest with a pair from the stripe but the Trojans took a 39-37 lead into the locker room.

Third Quarter:

Both teams had a hard time finding the bottom of the net to open the second half as the teams went scoreless for the first 2:12 seconds.  Jada Lee broke the seal with a layup off a Mariah Coker dish.  Coker followed up with an old-fashioned three-point play to regain the lead, 42-39.

Danielle Weldon and Jordan Pettaway connected from the field to push the lead to six, 46-40, with 5:06 to play in the quarter.

The Trojans ended the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a one point lead, 47-46, into the final stanza.

Fourth Quarter:

The lead would switch hands twice in the quarter as Jordan Pettaway gave the Hawks the lead.  Following a Trojan bucket, Joanne Williams tallied her only score of the contest to hand the lead back to the Hawks.

Virginia State tied the contest twice until Mariah Coker silenced the Trojans with a triple.  Chantel Roberts added to the lead with a three-point play to give the Hawks a 61-55 advantage.

The Trojans tried to cut into their deficit but seniors, Chantel Roberts and Dhyamond Crenshaw, had the answer at the other end.

Chowan's defense forced two errant shots in the final minute of the contest to seal the win.

UP NEXT

Chowan continues CIAA Northern Division play against regionally ranked Bowie State and Lincoln (Pa.) on January 24 and January 27 on the road.