BALTIMORE – Coppin State's
Aliyah Lawson and
Jaia Alexander combined for 40 points as the Eagles defeated Maryland Eastern Shore, 86-57, in women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at PEC Arena. With the win, Coppin improves to 9-9 overall and 3-2 in the MEAC while the Hawks fall to 5-11 and 1-3 in league play.
Lawson led all scorers with 22 points as she made 8-of-15 from the floor, including five 3-pointers. The Whitby, Ontario, native also had five rebounds, four assists and three steals and passed Genesis Lucas for second on the CSU all-time list with 129 3-pointers.
Alexander notched her third double-double of the season with 18 points and ten rebounds, making 7-of-13 from the field.
Freshman
Cortney Gardner went for a season-high 11 points and
Mossi Staples also hit double figures with ten points.
Alexandria Hamilton and
Jewel Watkins chipped in with six points apiece with Watkins adding nine rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocks.
Colleen Bucknor chipped in five points and both
Khya Jenkins and
Hope Evans finished with four points each.
Coppin outshot Eastern Shore, 48.3% to 30.6%, hit eight 3-pointers and made an impressive 20-of-26 from the free throw line.
The Eagles led from start to finish, opening the game with five-straight points with Lawson hitting a three, followed by a jumper by Alexander. The Navy & Gold upped its advantage by as many as 20-7 in the first quarter, following a layup by Bucknor with just under a minute left.
CSU kept up the fast pace on both ends of the floor in the second quarter and began to pull away with a 10-3 run, including four points by Gardner, midway through the period.
Maryland Eastern Shore came out of the intermission strong, opening the second half with eight-straight points, but the Eagles contained the run and pushed their lead back to 60-46 entering the final period.
Coppin dominated the final period, outscoring the Hawks, 26-11 and starting the period on a 17-2 run.
The matchup at Delaware State has been postponed to a 5:30 pm start on Wednesday, February 2.
