The Belmont Abbey women's basketball team dropped a 75-69 decision to the visiting Limestone Saints this evening at the Wheeler Center. Limestone, winners of seven-straight, move to 15-7 overall and 11-5 in Conference Carolinas, while the Abbey drops to 11-12 overall and 10-7 in Conference Carolinas.

Holding a slim 65-64 edge with 6:34 remaining, Limestone went 6-for-10 from the free throw line as the visitors closed the game on a 10-5 stretch to record their first ever regular season sweep over the Crusaders. Maria Young nailed a pair of free ones to give Limestone a three-point cushion before sophomore guard Tia Williams added a layup to push the margin to 69-64.

Shayla Jackson added three points to help the home team surge with a mini 5-2 run, pulling the Abbey to within 71-69 with 53 ticks remaining in regulation. However, Williams and Young combined to go 4-for-4 from the charity stripe in the closing seconds to help the Saints secure the 75-69 final, running their win streak to seven consecutive games.

Emerging from the half with a 40-33 lead, Limestone used a pair of triples from Young and a rainmaker from sophomore guard Stephanie Hayes to expand the advantage to 51-39 just 3:39 into the second stanza. Four straight points by Paula Regalado pulled the Abbey back to within eight points but an inside score by senior forward Nastashia Mitchell and three consecutive markers by Young staked the visitors to a 56-43 lead at the 13:40 mark.

Regalado poured in seven points, including connecting on a conventional three-point play, over the next 2:57 to ignite an 11-2 run, cutting the Crusaders deficit to four points. Young then tallied a layup and a pair of free throws for Limestone to halt the momentum for a brief moment before Regalado sparked a quick 6-0 spurt to pull Belmont Abbey to within 62-60. Although Hayes hit from behind the arc for the Saints, an inside score by Jackson and yet another bucket by Regalado put the home team within a single point, setting up the exhilarating finish.

In the first half, neither team was able to exert their will on the opposition. The Abbey did not hold a lead larger than three points and the Saints grabbed their largest spread of the half with a three-point bomb by Young with three ticks left in the opening frame, sending the visitors into the intermission with a seven-point advantage.

With the score knotted at 7-7, sophomore forward Ashley Robinson netted six points to fuel an 8-4 spurt to jump Limestone out to a 15-11 lead with 12:38 remaining. Candace Fox answered for the Crusaders with five straight markers to give the home team a one-point advantage.

Over the next two minutes, the lead changed hands five times before Hayes drilled three straight points to cap a quick 7-2 stretch to put the Saints out in front 26-22 at the 7:11 mark. A long distance strike by Fox and a layup by Regalado gave the Abbey their last lead of the game as the Blue and Gold closed the half on a 14-6 spurt.

Hayes drilled a three-pointer to put the Saints out in front for good before Robinson and Mitchell added inside buckets to push the margin to 37-31. Jackson added a bucket for Belmont Abbey to close the gap to 37-33 but it was nixed as Young found the range from beyond the arc to send the visitors into the break with a 40-33 lead.

Regalado lead the Abbey with 25 points, including 19 in the second half, behind a 10-for-11 effort from the floor while Jackson chipped in 21 points and a game-high eight boards. Fox finished with eight points and Kelsey Long dished out a game-high five assists to go with eight points.

The Saints held a slight 27-26 advantage in the rebounding department but grabbed a large 12-4 margin in second chance points. LC established a 36-34 edge in points in the paint and outscored the Crusaders 17-12 in points off turnovers. Although Belmont Abbey shot 60 percent (30-for-50) from the field it was Limestone's 38.9 percent (7-for-18) clip from three-point land that proved to be the difference.

Young paced the Blue and Gold with 29 points, also scoring 19 in the second half, on 4-of-8 shooting from outside the arc while also pulling down five rebounds and handing out four assists. She also finished with three steals. Hayes chipped in 12 points on three long range shots while junior forward Kaileigh West contributed 10 points behind a 5-of-9 performance and five rebounds. Robinson finished with eight points and Mitchell grabbed five boards to compliment her six points.