MARS HILL, N.C. -- Returning to the court for the first time in 18 days and aiming to put in yet another stellar performance on the road, the Lady Railsplitters (7-4, 4-2 SAC) invade Stanford Arena on Wednesday at 6 p.m. for a South Atlantic Conference contest against the Mars Hill Lions (3-8, 2-4 SAC).
 
Lincoln Memorial won its fifth consecutive road game way back on December 19 with a thorough dismissal of the Newberry Wolves, 68-56. The Lady Railsplitters offset a poor offensive display - 39.7 percent shooting and 6-of-17 from three-point land - by outrebounding the Wolves 52-28 and holding the home team to a paltry 34.4 percent effort from the floor. Thanks to 10 offensive boards by Megan Pittman (Liberty, Ky.), who produced 22 points and 15 rebounds in 27 minutes of action, the Lady Railsplitters amassed a 28-0 edge in second-chance points.
 
The Lady Railsplitters have been measurably better on the road this season, which is a stark contrast to last season, when Lincoln Memorial was 2-11 in true road games and 11-3 at Tex Turner Arena. In six road tilts this season, Lincoln Memorial is putting up 69.7 points per game on 43.5 percent shooting with an average of 49.2 rebounds, as compared to 64 points on 40.1 percent shooting with 40 rebounds per at home. The only area in which the Lady Railsplitters are worse on the road is turnovers, as they are committing 24 turnovers per game on the road as opposed to 15.3 at home.
 
Mars Hill enters Wednesday night's contest having won two of its last four games, which may not seem like much, but it's an encouraging sign for a team that started with just one win in its first seven appearances. The Lions shot 47.2 percent but allowed 53.6 percent shooting in their most recent outing, an 87-68 loss at Carson-Newman on Saturday afternoon. The Lady Railsplitters and Lions share five common opponents, as Mars Hill went 1-4 against King, Lees-McRae, Wingate, Newberry and Carson-Newman, a group that LMU compiled a 4-1 record against.
 
The Lions pair a middle of the road offense with a struggling defense. Mars Hill averages 65.9 points per game on 40.7 percent shooting and a 28 percent mark from long range, while allowing 68.8 points per game on 40.4 percent shooting and an efficient 33.5 percent clip from three-point territory. Mars Hill gets to the charity stripe more than any other team in the South Atlantic Conference with 23.2 free throw attempts per game, but is ranked second-to-last in free throw percentage with a 64.7 percent mark. The Lions are also ranked second-to-last in the SAC in turnovers per game with 20.5.
 
Mars Hill has four players averaging double figures this season. Cadence Wilmoth - a 6-1 senior forward from Glade Spring, Va. - headlines that quartet with 13.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game on 50 percent shooting. 5-5 redshirt senior Ansley Ricker is contributing 12.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game on a 38.5 percent mark from long range. Junior guard Paige Chavis is filling up the stat sheet with 11.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game on 37.9 percent shooting. Genice Lane is piling up 10 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 45.7 percent from the field.
 
LMU and Mars Hill have split the regular season series in each of the past two seasons. The Lady Railsplitters led 84-81 with 41 seconds left in regulation in last season's meeting at Stanford Arena, but Mars Hill buried two free throws with 13 ticks left to cap the come-from-behind 85-84 victory in a game that featured 12 ties and 10 lead changes. Shea Coker (Knoxville, Tenn.) had 17 points for the Lady Railsplitters on 6-of-7 shooting coupled with six rebounds, while Kiara Rawls (Killeen, Texas) produced 16 points on 6-for-20 shooting.
 
The Lady Railsplitters own a 13-10 advantage all-time against Mars Hill, but are just 5-6 in 11 trips to Stanford Arena since 1983.
 
Game time is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday. An audio link is available at www.LMURailsplitters.com, while fans can also follow along with Voice of the Railsplitters Rusty Peace at WLMU 91.3 The Gap.
 
Additional Notes
The Lady Railsplitters defeated the Lions 100-90 at Tex Turner Arena last season. Rawls had 15 points and five assists, while Kortnay Cox (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) collected 10 points in 22 minutes...LMU is accustomed to having a tremendous advantage on the backboards, but that might not be the case against Mars Hill, who has five players listed at 5-10 or taller. The Lions are ranked fifth in the SAC in rebounding margin (plus 2.2) and fourth in total rebounds per game (39.7)...Wilmoth has hit double figures in seven straight games for the Lions...Pittman has six double-doubles this season with three in her last four appearances.