BALTIMORE, Md.- Redshirt freshman Tierra Hawkins (Clinton, Md.) scored a game-high 17 points, with 15 coming in the second half, but the Coppin State University women's basketball team turned a hot-shooting first half into a 76-58 victory over the Lady Hornets Saturday afternoon at CSU's Physical Education Complex.
Hawkins went 6-for-12 from the floor and 5-of-6 from the free throw line for her second-straight 17-point performance of the season. The forward has scored in double figures in 19 of 23 games this year.
The Eagles opened the game with a 5-4 lead before a five-plus minute scoring drought for Delaware State gave Coppin State a19-4 advantage. Hawkins scored her only two points of the half at the12:10 mark to stop the drought, but the Eagles responded with four points to go up by 17 at 23-6 with 11:05 remaining.
The Lady Hornets would cut the lead to 11 with just over eight minutes remaining in the half, but CSU held DSU scoreless for the next three minutes and took a 22-point lead at 3:50 with a 10-2 run.
A 3-pointer from sophomore Tasia Bristow (Baltimore, Md.) at the end of the first half pulled the Lady Hornets within 18 with a 44-26 halftime score.
Hawkins and Bristow sparked Del State in the second half, scoring the first 13 points of the second half for the Lady Hornets.
A jumper from Hawkins at the 9:14 mark brought DSU within 12 at 59-47, but the Eagles spouted off five straight points to go up, 64-47, with just over five minutes remaining in the game.
The Lady Hornets would never recover from this deficit as Coppin State eventually went up by 21 with just over a minute left on the clock and took the win at 76-58.
Bristow finished the game with 13 points while fellow sophomore Deanna Harmon (Owings Mills, Md.) added in 11 points of her own. Junior Kianna D'Oliveira (Newport News, Va.) collected a team-high eight rebounds in the loss.
The Eagles had double figure scoring from four players in Crystal Whittington (15), Dawnnae Roberts (11), Ashle Craig (10) and Jeanine Manley (10). Leola Spotwood tallied a game-high nine rebounds for Coppin State.
The loss is Delaware State's fourth straight as the Lady Hornets fall to 4-19 on the year and 1-9 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Coppin State improves to 14-10 overall and 9-2 in MEAC play.
DSU continues their Baltimore swing as they travel to Morgan State on Monday with a 5:30 p.m. tip.
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