HARROGATE, Tenn. -- The Lady Railsplitters (11-9, 8-6 SAC) hope to take advantage of one of their last remaining home games on Wednesday night, returning to the friendly confines of Tex Turner Arena for a South Atlantic Conference battle against arch-rival Carson-Newman (15-5, 9-5 SAC). Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. in Harrogate, Tenn.
 
The road continued to be unkind to Lincoln Memorial this past Saturday, as the Lady Railsplitters lost their sixth consecutive game played outside of Harrogate. The Coker Cobras closed Saturday's contest with an 18-8 flurry to hand the Lady Railsplitters a 67-62 loss. The visiting unit shot 49.1 percent in the game, the program's highest field-goal percentage in a loss since January, 2012. Shea Coker (Knoxville, Tenn.) hit five three-pointers and led all players with 17 points, Kiara Rawls (Killeen, Texas) pitched in 16 points, and Josey Harding (Middletown, Ohio) recorded a double-double with 10 points and 13 boards. The Lady Railsplitters' ever-fluctuating turnover problem reared its ugly head as LMU committed 20 miscues.
 
As difficult as it has been on the road for the Lady Railsplitters, it's been inversely as favorable at home. Lincoln Memorial has captured four consecutive wins at Tex Turner since January 14. Second-place Anderson - winners of eight consecutive games - was the last team to defeat the Lady Railsplitters at home, scrapping for an 82-78 victory on January 7.
 
After Wednesday, the Lady Railsplitters will have only two home games remaining on the regular-season schedule, hitting the road for five of the last seven game of the regular season.
 
In any case, a streak will come to a close on Wednesday night. After ripping off 11 straight wins to open the 2014-15 campaign, Carson-Newman has lost five of its nine games since the calendar turned to 2015, including a current two-game losing skid. The Eagles became the seventh straight team to fall to Anderson last Wednesday before suffering a stunning 87-78 loss to Catawba on Saturday afternoon. Carson-Newman held an 11-point lead at the half, but was outscored 60-40 in the second stanza. Turnovers came back to haunt the Eagles in that loss as the Indians turned 23 miscues into 30 points.
 
One of the key components of Carson-Newman's recent regression is three-point shooting. In December, the Eagles went 5-0 and knocked down 36.2 percent of their three-pointers, a figure that would lead the South Atlantic Conference. Since December ended, Carson-Newman is 4-5 and has hit only 29 percent of its three-point tries, which would rank ninth out of 12 teams.
 
The Eagles lead the South Atlantic Conference in scoring with 72 points per game on a 41.1 percent clip. Carson-Newman also assists more than any other team in the league, dishing out 16 assists per contest. Opponents are averaging 64 points per game against the Eagles on 37.8 percent shooting.
 
Freshman forward Jessica Simerly is carrying the load for the Eagles, as she is averaging 11 points and six rebounds per game in her first collegiate season. Junior guard Tatum Burstrom is contributing 9.6 points on nearly 10 field-goal attempts per game. Jai Jai McLaughlin is filling up the stat sheet with 8.9 points, five rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Kailyn Brooks is scoring 8.8 points per game, while Whitney Kyle is posting 7.5 points and 5.6 boards per game.
 
The history between Lincoln Memorial and Carson-Newman is rich as Wednesday will mark the 86th all-time meeting between the two rivals. The Eagles own a 46-39 advantage in the series, but LMU holds a 24-19 edge in Harrogate. The Lady Railsplitters have won three straight over the Eagles since nabbing a 64-62 overtime victory on February 20, 2013. Lincoln Memorial defeated Carson-Newman 73-68 in Jefferson City and 80-71 in Harrogate last season. The Lady Railsplitters have not beaten the Eagles four straight times since rolling off six consecutive wins from 2001-03.
 
Aisjah Lee (Louisville, Ky.) led the Lady Railsplitters to victory in last season's meeting in Tex Turner Arena, scoring 20 points, grabbing six rebounds and snatching three steals in 33 minutes of work. Katrina Ottesen (Chandler, Az.) poured in nine points with seven rebounds in a reserve role.
 
The Lady Railsplitters and Eagles are scheduled to get underway at 6 p.m. on Wednesday night. Live stats and an HD video broadcast will be available at www.LMURailsplitters.com. Fans can also listen along with Voice of the Railsplitters Rusty Peace live from inside of Tex Turner Arena at WLMU 91.3 the Gap.

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