HARROGATE, Tenn. -- After gritting out a hard-fought win on Wednesday evening, the Lady Railsplitters (8-7, 5-4 SAC) look to carry that momentum into the weekend as they host the Queens Royals (4-10, 2-7 SAC) in South Atlantic Conference action at Tex Turner Arena. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. on Saturday, January 17 in Harrogate, Tenn.
 
A tremendous performance by junior Megan Pittman (Liberty, Ky.) helped Lincoln Memorial snap its season-long five game losing skid with an 85-80 victory over the Tusculum Pioneers on Wednesday evening. Pittman reset two season highs with 23 points and 15 rebounds in 36 minutes of action, burying 11 of her 16 shot attempts. She was backed by Katrina Ottesen (Chandler, Az.), who poured in 18 points on a 4-of-7 mark from three-point territory. The Lady Railsplitters shot 46.5 percent in the contest, their most efficient shooting performance since hitting 50.9 percent of their shots in a win over Newberry on December 15.
 
The backcourt continues to produce for the Lady Railsplitters in the absence of low-post scorers Stephanie Smith (La Vergne, Tenn.), Kortnay Cox (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) and Samantha Satterlee (Junction City, Kan.). Senior Aisjah Lee (Louisville, Ky.) has scored 10 points or more in three of the last four games. She filled up the stat sheet in Wednesday's win over Tusculum, tallying 12 points, eight assists and seven rebounds in 40 minutes.  Kiara Rawls (Killeen, Texas), meanwhile, has posted double figures in back-to-back games. She scored 11 points, dished out five assists and swiped three steals against the Pioneers.
 
Saturday's opponent, the Queens Royals, arrives in Harrogate tied for the worst record in the SAC, but they seem to have turned a bit of a corner in recent weeks. After a 1-8 start, Queens has won three of its last five games. But the Royals have dropped back-to-back games by 17-point margins, falling to Carson-Newman on the road and Wingate in Charlotte, N.C.
 
The Royals are ranked last in the league in points per game (53.6), made field goals per game (19.4), field goal attempts per game (47.2), three-pointers per game (3.1) and rebounds per game (33.2). Queens is shooting the rock at a respectable 41.1 percent clip, but they are committing the most turnovers per game in the league this season (21.1).
 
Senior Lacey Singletary and freshman McKell Oliverio lead the Royals offensively. Singletary is scoring 11.3 points and grabbing a team-high 5.5 rebounds per contest, while Oliverio is adding 10.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Senior Abby Pettit is factoring in seven points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game to back that duo.
 
The Lady Railsplitters are looking to sweep the regular-season series with Queens after earning a 52-41 victory over the Royals on November 22 in Charlotte, N.C. It was a defensive struggle as the two teams combined to go 30-for-106 from the field. The Lady Railsplitters shot 31 percent, but limited the Royals to just 25 percent shooting with a dismal 2-for-14 mark from three-point range. Stephanie Smith turned in one her best performances of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds in just 23 minutes of action. Pittman logged nine points and a then season-high 14 rebounds.
 
The Lady Railsplitters won last season's meeting in Harrogate 66-61. Lincoln Memorial is 4-0 all-time against the Royals at Tex Turner Arena.
 
Tip-off between the Lady Railsplitters and Royals is slated for 2 p.m. on Saturday at Tex Turner Arena. Live stats and an HD video broadcast - hosted by the LMU Sports Network - will be available via www.LMURailsplitters.com. Fans can also follow the game live on WLMU 91.3 the Gap with Voice of the Railsplitters Rusty Peace. Pre-game coverage kicks off at 1:40.

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