JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman Lady Eagles (6-2, 4-0 South Atlantic Conference) women's defeated the Catawba Lady Indians (4-3, 3-1 South Atlantic Conference) by a score of 66-58 at Holt Fieldhouse on Saturday afternoon.

Carson-Newman trailed 43-33 with 12:25 to play before unleashing a furious 18-0 run to take a 51-43 lead with 7:31 to go, and the Lady Eagles held on as Carson-Newman took the top spot in the SAC standings with the victory, becoming the lone school to start the conference schedule unbeaten at 4-0.

"This is another win where we had to come from behind in the second half, and I was a little scared there when we got down by 10 points and things weren't going our way, but we changed the lineup a little bit and the five out there really gelled together and the press was working for us," said Carson-Newman head coach Mike Mincey. "That run was huge, and without that run we're not going to win the game."

For the second straight game, the Lady Eagles were led in scoring by senior Chante' Markus (Hummelstown, Pa.) as she scored a career-high 16 points and she hit four 3-pointers, two of which fueled Carson-Newman's 18-0 run to take control of the game.

"She's the one carrying the most experience out of the ones playing" said Mincey about his senior. "I'm really proud of her and I like the way she's playing.

Markus was joined in double-figure scoring by junior Jassmine Franklin (Lexington, Ky.) and sophomore Haley Coffelt (Tracy City, Tenn.) as both set career-highs in scoring with 13 points and 10 points respectively.

The first half was largely back-and-forth, as the score was tied seven times and the lead changed six times in the first 20 minutes. The Lady Eagles closed the first half on a 7-1 run to lead 24-23 at the break.

The Lady Indians started the second half strong, and rallied to lead 43-33 with 12:25 left to go. Then Carson-Newman made its furious rally, going on an 18-0 run over the next four minutes, thanks in large part to baskets by Markus, Franklin, freshman Kailyn Brooks (Knoxville, Tenn.) and sophomore Taylor Peterson (Mt. Juliet, Tenn.).

The Lady Indians would cut the lead to as small at five in the final two minutes, yet Carson-Newman closed the game on a 7-4 run to get its fourth win of conference play, 66-58.

Catawba saw three players score in double-figures, led by the 15 points of Mallary Clay. Carson-Newman held Chloe Bully, who averaged 16.8 points per game coming into the contest, to only 11 points, all of which came in the second half.

Carson-Newman will next play on Wednesday Dec. 11 against the Limestone Saints at Holt Fieldhouse at 6 p.m., in a makeup of a game that was originally scheduled for Nov. 13.

Wednesday's game will be carried on the Eagle Sports Network's flagship station WPFT-FM 106.3 FM, with coverage beginning at 5:45 p.m. with "The Countdown to Tipoff," and live video is also available on www.cneagles.com.