JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Skylar Boshears scored a career-high 31 points as Carson-Newman shot 55 percent from the field to net its first 100-point scoring effort of the year to win 103-70 against Mars Hill in Wednesday night South Atlantic Conference action at Holt Fieldhouse.
Boshears went 15-for-17 from the field shooting 88 percent, the 11th-best effort by a Division II player for the year. Of the 22 players to make 80 percent from the field, the Lafollette, Tenn. native is the second make 15 or more. All told her 15 made shots were tied for the sixth-most by a Division II player for the year as she added five rebounds, two assists and two blocks.
"She was aggressive," Carson-Newman coach Mike Mincey said. "Skylar is a really gifted scorer. She can score in a variety of ways. She only hit one three tonight but that's the only one she took and she made it. Her uncanniness to get to the rim and she's a big guard. I was able to leave her on the floor longer today because her offense carries into her defense. She played hard it was a very efficient night."
For the 30th time under coach Mike Mincey, the Lady Eagles scored at least 100 points in a game improving to 29-1 in those affairs while scoring triple digits for the sixth time in the last 11 meetings with the Lions.
Carson-Newman (6-5, 2-2) has beaten Mars Hill (3-6, 0-3) in 13 straight meetings, all by double figures and 20 times in the last 21 meetings overall. In the club's last 27 victories over the Lions, 25 have been by at least 10 points.
Braelyn Wykle (Greeneville, Tenn.) tossed in 18 points in 27 minutes, Ruthie Mbugua (Danville, Ky.) added a dozen with eight rebounds and three assists and Campbell Penland (Sevierville, Tenn.) chipped in 10 points and six assists.
The Orange and Blue's bench outscored the Lions 40-0 as all 12 players scored in the contest. Overall, C-N finished with 34 assists on 42 made field goals with six logging at least three, the most assists since handing out 36 at Queens on Feb. 12, 2022 spanning 20 games and 303 days.
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— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) December 15, 2022
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The Lions spent nearly six minutes in front in the opening period and were on top 15-12 with 3:16 to go in the period before the Lady Eagles responded by scoring eight of the final 11 to take a 20-18 edge going to the second quarter.
Eighteen seconds into the second, Mars Hill tied the tally at 20 only to see the Lady Eagles use runs of 9-0 and 14-0 to close the period on a 29-6 outburst taking a 49-26 lead into the locker room. C-N shot 62 percent in the quarter and made 11 of its final 15 attempts of the half.
The two sides combined for 61 points shooting 23-for-38 from the field in the period as the Lady Eagles built as large as a 29-point lead and the Lions getting as close as 22 before C-N scored the final six to go ahead 82-54 going into the fourth.
In the final frame, the Lions were held to 5-for-20 shooting from the floor while the Lady Eagles made eight of 12 at the line to build up its largest margin of the game at the final whistle.
Mars Hill's SAC losing streak extends to 19 consecutive games, the sixth-longest skid among Division II clubs. Maddie Gillie led four double-digit scorers with 23 points adding seven rebounds and four assists.
Janette Hanni tallied 17 points and seven rebounds while Naja Gongba and Jo Snow each scored 13 points for the game. The Lions finished 3-for-21 from the three-point arc.
The Lady Eagles continue their home swing on Wednesday at 2 p.m. welcoming Mars Hill to Holt Fieldhouse. Broadcast coverage airs on Mountain Talk 106.3 FM and cneagles.com/live starting at 1:45 p.m. with "The AEC Countdown to Tip-Off" courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network.
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