JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Checking in at number nine on Caron-Newman Athletics New Year's Countdown is the event that happened most recently out of all the entries.
On Dec. 14, Tatum Burstrom caught fire in Lenoir-Rhyne's Shuford Memorial Gymnasium to drop a career high 27 points on the Bears en route to leading the Lady Eagles to an 80-77 road win.
The performance and victory were significant for a pair of reasons. One, it kept Carson-Newman as the lone unbeaten team in the South Atlantic Conference at 5-0. Two, it snapped a six-game losing streak to the Bears – the Lady Eagles first win in Hickory, N.C., since the 2010-11 season.
Burstrom's top scoring performance in her career included going 9-for-16 from the field, along with a 5-for-10 mark from beyond the arc.
Chante' Markus (Hummelstown, Pa.) joined Burstrom in double-digit scoring with 11, including a crucial layup that gave Carson-Newman the lead for good late in the contest.
The Bears started the game strong with a 10-3 run in the game's first four minutes.
Carson-Newman climbed back with a 12-2 run featuring several 3-pointers, including one by Taylor Peterson (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) that gave the Lady Eagles a 27-24 lead over the Bears with 8:30 left in the first half.
The rest of the half was back-and-forth, and at halftime the Lady Eagles led 46-45, thanks in large part to 20 first half points from Burstrom.
Carson-Newman would grow and maintain the lead in the second half. The Bears fought back, and eventually tied the contest at 73 with 2:36 remaining on a 3-pointer by Danielle Bongiorno. Markus got the lead back for C-N on a layup before the Bears once again tied the contest at 75 on a pair of made free throws by Krystal Patton with 1:51 remaining.
Markus gave Carson-Newman the lead for good with 1:26 to play on a layup that gave C-N a 77-75 lead. After Cupples hit a pair of free throws to grow the lead to 79-75, the Bears came back with a Jordan Hiatt layup that cut the lead to 79-77 with seven seconds remaining. The Bears quickly fouled Jai Jai McLaughlin, and going 1-for-2 at the line was enough to secure the 80-77 victory.
The Carson-Newman Athletics New Year's Countdown continues Monday with moment eight.
Check cneagles.com, @cnathletics on Twitter and facebook.com/cneagles each day to find out what ranks where.
We'll reveal a moment every day with the exception of Christmas, with the top moment being revealed New Year's Eve.
Carson-Newman athletic administrators, coaches, assistants and trainers contributed to the rankings.
No. 1 - ??? revealed 12-31
No. 2 - ??? revealed 12-30
No. 3 - ??? revealed 12-29
No. 4 - ??? revealed 12-28
No. 5 - ??? revealed 12-27
No. 6 - ??? revealed 12-26
No. 7 - ??? revealed 12-24
No. 8 – ??? revealed 12-23
No. 9 – Burstrom busts for 27 as C-N snaps streak at L-R
No. 10 - C-N swimming wins its first event