HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lady Railsplitters have prided themselves on being a fourth-quarter team and they proved formidable in the final period once again on Saturday at Tex Turner Arena.
 
But it wasn't enough to overcome the quarter that preceded it as the Coker Cobras (3-4, 2-0 SAC) outscored Lincoln Memorial (4-3, 2-1 SAC) by 11 points in the third quarter and held on for a 64-61 win in South Atlantic Conference women's hoops action, snapping the Lady Railsplitters' four-game winning streak.
 
The loss spoiled another outstanding individual effort by Megan Pittman (Liberty, Ky.), who led the Lady Railsplitters with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting paired with eight rebounds in 32 minutes of action. Britney Guy (Locust Grove, Ga.) added 10 points but was held scoreless in the second half. Jasmine Kelly (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.) contributed eight points, four rebounds and three assists in 30 minutes, while Josey Harding (Middletown, Ohio) pulled down nine rebounds. Kortnay Cox (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) notched six points and a team-leading 11 rebounds in 17 minutes off of the bench.
 
The Lady Railsplitters led 36-35 at the half but went absolutely ice cold in the third period, finishing just 3-for-12 from the field with five turnovers over that 10-minute stretch. The Cobras took advantage of Lincoln Memorial's offensive struggles, too, using a 17-4 run over the first eight and a half minutes of the period to pull ahead 52-40 following six unanswered points by Jazz Green. When the dust had settled on the third period, the Lady Railsplitters were staring up at a 56-46 deficit.
 
Head coach Krystal Evans went deep into her bench early in the fourth quarter, using a lineup that consisted of freshmen Emily Griffith (Oliver Springs, Tenn.), Rachel Griffith (Oliver Springs, Tenn.) and Brooke Taylor (White Pine, Tenn.), and that group helped pace a 7-2 run that closed the gap to 58-53 with 5:07 to play.
 
But the Cobras responded with five straight points to push their lead back to 63-53 with 3:55 to go.
 
Lincoln Memorial refused to go quietly, though, rallying behind a stifling defense that forced three missed shots and two turnovers, which led to an 8-0 run and made it a 63-61 game on a pair of free throws by Kelly with 48 seconds to play. Coker missed a three-pointer in its final offensive possession and the Lady Railsplitters raced down court with a chance to either win or tie the game. As the seconds ticked away, Shea Coker (Knoxville, Tenn.) got loose at the top of the key and let what would have been the game-winning three-pointer fly, but her shot missed the mark. Jazz Green then went 1-of-2 at the free throw line to seal the victory.
 
The Lady Railsplitters went 23-for-62 (37.1 percent) from the field, which included a 0-for-10 mark from beyond the three-point arc. That was the program's most attempts without a make since they went 0-for-12 from three-point territory in a loss to Cumberland College on January 11, 1996.
 
Coker, meanwhile, went 22-for-48 (45.8 percent) from the field, 5-for-13 (38.5 percent) from the three and 15-for-19 (78.9 percent) at the charity stripe.
 
Green led the Cobras with 24 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and three assists. Morgan Williams chipped in 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting, while Kiara Shoats had 11 points and four assists.
 
Quick Hits
The loss snapped the Lady Railsplitters' four-game winning streak and denied them of their first five-game winning streak since 2006...Lincoln Memorial dominated the boards 42-30 and grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, which led to 16 second-chance points - Cox and Harding led the team with seven offensive rebounds apiece...The Lady Railsplitters displayed solid ball security in the contest, turning it over just 12 times. However, Coker took advantage of nearly all of those miscues by scoring 15 points off of turnovers...After outscoring the Cobras 15-8 in the fourth quarter, the Lady Railsplitters have a combined 143-125 edge in the fourth period this season...The Lady Railsplitters had a season-low eight assists, snapping a streak of six straight games with at least 10 assists
 
Up Next
The Lady Railsplitters head to Bristol, Tenn. for a nonconference match-up against the King Tornado on Saturday, December 12, when they will be looking to avenge a 61-41 loss to the Tornado last season. Coker hosts Queens in South Atlantic Conference action on Wednesday.