Long Beach State University Athletics
Beach to Third, Belmont Wins Title
12/21/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
BELMONT WINS BEACH CLASSIC December 21, 2002 LONG BEACH, CA – San Pedro Hilton Beach Classic MVP Erica Davenport chipped in 13 points, to give Nashville's Belmont University (8-1) the tournament title, defeating Southern Illinois (4-4) 67-57. All-Tournament selection Hollie Davis led all scorers with 21points for the Champion Bruins. Also making the all-tournament team, from Belmont: Chasity Campbell; from Southern Illinois: Katie Berwanger and Molly McDowell; and from Long Beach State: Glory Johnson. Davenport tied a single-game tournament record with 34 points last night against the 49ers. Belmont's Chasity Campbell added 12 points, while Katie Berwanger led SIU with 16 points and 12 rebounds. The Salukis shot 41%, while Belmont hit 41% of their shots. Davis' driving layup with 3:38 left put Belmont up 62-52, to put the game away Hollie Davis' three-pointer with 8:25 left gave Belmont their first lead since midway throught the first half, at 54-51, capping a 15-5 run. Belmont used a 12-3 run midway through the second half to tie it at 49-49. Saluki Dana Pinkston's fastbreak layup with 17:06 left, gave SIU their biggest lead, at that point, 46-37. Stephanie Brown broke up a 6-0 run by Belmont, with a three-point play with 13:24 left to lead 49-43. SIU took a 39-34 lead at the half, shooting 52%, compared to Belmont's 43% clip. Southern Illinois went up by as many as seven, late in the second half, leading 39-32 on Megan Miller's free throw with 35 seconds left in the half. The Salukis led for much of the half, with Belmont leading briefly, 21-19,with 9:53 left. CONSOLATION GAME Long Beach charged out of the locker room on a 16-1 run to take a 56-39 lead with 9:50 left to play. LBSU stretched their lead to 69-54, their largest lead of the game, with 3:38 remaining. Mercer went on a 13-3 run to bring the game within six points, 73-67, with 1:00 remaining, but Long Beach proved to be too much, as they pulled away with the victory. Johnson led the team in rebounds with 13, while Baker grabbed eight boards. The Beach shot 46% from the field. . Lee Lee Cannon led Mercer with 21 points before she fouled out with 1:00 remaining. Dana Zimmerman chipped in 11 points, while Ramona Wright led the team with seven rebounds. Mercer shot 35% for the game. Long Beach State ended the half up 34-28 keyed by Christina Mack's 10 points. The Beach led by as many as seven points two different times and committed only six turnovers in the first half. Mercer opened up the game on a 8-0 run before Long Beach battled back going on a 10-0 run of their own to take the lead, 10-8, early in the game. Mercer tied the game at 10-10, and 19-19, but never was able to recover their lead. The 49ers next travel to Northern Arizona on December 28, before hosting the University of San Francisco on January 2. ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
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