BALTIMORE – The trio of
Angel Jones,
Laila Lawrence and
Faith Blackstone combined for 57 points in a 75-69 Coppin State women's basketball victory over Maryland Eastern Shore on Monday night at PEC Arena. The Eagles improve to 5-11 overall and 2-0 in the MEAC while the Hawks fall to 7-9 on the year and 0-2 in league play.
Jones led all players with 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting while hitting a career-high 9-of-11 from the line. Lawrence tallied 19 points with eight rebounds and three steals and Blackstone added 17 points off the bench while making 7-of-8 from the line.
Mossi Staples, who was honored pregame for eclipsing 1,000 career points,
and Tiffany Hammond added six points apiece, followed by
Cassandra Hawthrone with four and
Khya Jenkins with a pair. Staples dished out five assists to lead all players.
Coppin shot 50 percent from the floor compared to 40.6% for the Hawks, who had 22 offensive rebounds which turned into 23 second-chance points. The Eagles made 27-of-38 from the line, their most made free throws since February 14, 2022, in a win against NC Central.
How it Happened
- Maryland Eastern Shore outscored Coppin, 19-14, in a high-scoring first quarter, tallying 11 of the final 17 points.
- The Hawks extended their lead to as many as 34-21 with 2:47 left in the half and took a 37-26 lead at the break.
- Coppin erupted for 49 points in the second half, going for 21 points in the third and cutting the deficit to just 51-47 after three.
- Blackstone scored four of the team's final six points with the Eagles closing the period on a 6-0 run.
- The Eagles scored 28 points in the fourth, their most in any quarter this season, taking a 67-65 lead on a jumper by Jones with just under three minutes remaining.
- UMES tied the score on the ensuing possession which Lawrence answered with an old-fashioned three-point play with 1:51 left.
- A pair of free throws by the Hawks got them back within one, but Jones hit 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to seal the win for the Navy & Gold.
Up Next: Coppin returns to action on Saturday, January 20 when it hosts archrival Morgan State in a 2 pm tipoff on ESPN+.
