JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles (9-4, 6-1 South Atlantic Conference) women's basketball team defeated the Mars Hill Lions (2-9, 1-6 South Atlantic Conference) by a score of 85-67 at Holt Fieldhouse on Wednesday evening.

With the win and Wingate's loss at Lenoir-Rhyne and Catawba's loss to Newberry, Carson-Newman is now back in sole possession of first place in the SAC standings at 6-1 in conference play.

"It's hard to sweep any team in conference play and Mars Hill has always been a tough opponent for us," said Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey. "They're a good team and even there late the game could've gone either way but luckily our kids put the ball in the basket and extended our lead.

Freshman Kaitlyn Cupples (Clinton, Tenn.) led Carson-Newman with her career-high 15 points. She was joined in double-digit scoring by junior Lashawnda Peacher (Springfield, Tenn.) with her 12 points along with freshman Kailyn Brooks (Lafayette, Tenn.) and sophomore Taylor Peterson (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) with both players adding 10 points for the Lady Eagles.

"We had a good vibe coming in and we came out strong," said Cupples. "Our goal was just to finish around the rim as a team and I think we accomplished what we wanted to do."

Carson-Newman never trailed in the game, as the Lady Eagles swept Mars Hill for the season after C-N beat the Lions 62-57 on Nov. 26.

The Lady Eagles began the game on a 7-0 run fueled by early buckets from Cupples and a 3-pointer from sophomore Tatum Burstrom (Maryville, Tenn.) Carson-Newman shot  40 percent from the field in the first half, with Peterson leading all C-N scorers with eight points at halftime as the Lady Eagles led 37-24.

Carson-Newman grew the lead to as much as 21 in the second half, and Peacher came on strong for the Lady Eagles. She scored all 12 of her points in the second period, with Carson-Newman shooting 18-for-36 (50 percent) from the field in the second period as the Lady Eagles pulled away for the 18-point victory.

Mars Hill was led in scoring by Greeneville, Tenn., native Ansley Ricker with her 18 points.

Carson-Newman will next play on Saturday at Queens (N.C.) with a 2 p.m. tipoff from Charlotte, N.C.

Saturday's game will be carried on the Eagle Sports Network's flagship station WPFT-FM 106.3 FM, with coverage beginning at 1:45 p.m. with "The Countdown to Tipoff," and live audio is also available on www.cneagles.com.