Trailing 32-23 at the half, the Belmont Abbey women's basketball team outscored Lees-McRae 42-20 in the second half as the Lady Crusaders earned a key 65-52 road win this evening. The Abbey, winners of two-straight, improves to 7-4 overall and 5-1 in Conference Carolinas, while the Lady Bobcats fall to 5-7 overall and 3-4 in Conference Carolinas.

Belmont Abbey converted 23 of its 56 field goal attempts (41.1 percent) as junior guard Courtney Naquin led all scorers and three Lady Crusaders in double figures with 16 points on five of nine shooting from the field, including four three-pointers in eight attempts. She sank both of her free throw attempts, while dishing out two assists and collecting two steals in 31 minutes. Junior guard Ashley Giddens added 12 points on four of nine shooting from the field and added three assists and two steals in 34 minutes. Sophomore guard Amanda McDonald posted ten points, two assists and two steals in 18 minutes. Shayla Jackson led all players with 11 rebounds as the Abbey held a 40-36 advantage on the boards. Jackson tied for the game-high with four assists.

Lees-McRae shot 35.1 percent (20-57) from the field as Lauren Casey led the way with 12 points and Ashley Holland added ten. The Lady Bobcats shot 43.3 percent (13-30) in the first half and held the Abbey to a 32.1 percent (9-28) effort in the opening half, but the roles were reversed in the second half as the Abbey erased the nine-point halftime deficit by firing for 50 percent (14-28) from the floor in the second stanza and holding Lees-McRae to a 25.9 percent (7-27) effort.

The Abbey is back in action Saturday afternoon at 2:00 when it hosts Coker at the Wheeler Center.