JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles (4-1) women's basketball team will return to action on Wednesday with their conference opener against the Brevard Tornados (1-3) at Holt Fieldhouse at 6 p.m.

The Lady Eagles are riding a four-game winning streak, with the most recent victory coming last Tuesday in a 62-61 win over Columbus State in Jefferson City.

"We feel pretty good about where we are," said Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey. "We're certainly not peaking at the moment but we have won our games and found a way to win and hopefully we can continue that streak tomorrow."

Against Columbus State, Carson-Newman was led in scoring by senior Nikki James (Cookeville, Tenn.) with her 22 points, and she scored what proved to be the winning layup with 18 seconds left in the game to deliver the Lady Eagles a 62-61 lead, which would be the final score.

"I've seen Nikki really progress over the last three weeks and certainly the last game was a breakout game for her scoring-wise and she could've actually had more," said Mincey. "Her conditioning is getting there, her strength is getting there, and I expect to continue to see her doing big things as we get on into this conference game and the rest of our non-conference schedule."

The Lady Eagles continue to be led in scoring by freshman Tatum Burstrom (Maryville, Tenn.), who is averaging 15.8 points per game and leads Carson-Newman with 18 made three-pointers. Also averaging double-digit points for the Lady Eagles are James (11.2) and junior Shyra Brown (10.2).

Wednesday's game marks the start of conference play for the Lady Eagles. While Carson-Newman was picked to finish seventh in the South Atlantic Conference, Brevard was tabbed for a 10^th place finish in the preseason coaches poll.

The Lady Tornados are 1-3 this season, and are led by preseason All-SAC selection Micheala Watkins, who averages 16 points a game. Brevard is coming off its first win of the season, a 74-63 victory over the Virginia State Trojans last Wednesday.

Coverage of Wednesday's conference opener is available on the Coca-Cola Eagle Sports Network, beginning with the Farm Bureau Countdown to Tipoff at 5:45 p.m. and the broadcast is also available on www.cneagles.com.