GREENVILLE, S.C. -- The fifth-seeded Lady Railsplitters (17-11) aim to take down the top-seeded and 25th-ranked Anderson Trojans (21-5) on Saturday at noon when the two teams collide in the semifinals of the South Atlantic Conference Championship at Furman's Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C.
 
Lincoln Memorial advanced past the quarterfinal round of the SAC Tournament for the first time in its 10 seasons as members of the league on Wednesday night, overcoming the fourth-seeded Mars Hill Lions 75-72 in Mars Hill, N.C. In a game that featured 13 ties and nine lead changes, Britney Guy (Locust Grove, Ga.) broke the final tie on a pair of free throws with 49 seconds left, which gave the Lady Railsplitters a 70-68 lead. LMU would then go 5-for-6 at the charity stripe over the final 40 seconds to seal the win. Kiara Rawls (Killeen, Texas) led the way with 16 points, while Megan Pittman (Liberty, Ky.), an All-SAC first team pick, produced 14 points and eight rebounds.
 
With that win, the Lady Railsplitters secured their most victories in a single season since the 2003-04 team went 21-8. Lincoln Memorial last won at least 15 games in a season in 2013-14, as that team compiled a 16-11 mark.
 
The top-seeded Trojans had a much easier time in their quarterfinal round game, cruising into Saturday's semifinal with a 64-48 win over eight-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne on Wednesday night. Anderson trailed by four points late in the first quarter, but outscored the Bears 18-7 in the second quarter and never looked back. That gave the Trojans their fifth win in the past six games.
 
In order to advance to their first conference championship game as members of the NCAA Division II, the Lady Railsplitters will have to snap a five-game losing skid against the Trojans, as Anderson won both of this season's meetings. The Trojans lead the SAC and rank 27th nationally in field-goal percentage defense, and that stingy defense was on display in the two regular-season clashes. The Lady Railsplitters combined to shoot just under 37 percent against the Trojans this season with a 9-for-37 mark (24.3 percent) from three-point range.
 
In the first meeting on January 13 at Tex Turner Arena, the Lady Railsplitters rallied from a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit to send the game into overtime. With nothing decided after five extra minutes of basketball, the game went into double overtime, where the then 14th-ranked Trojans pulled out the 88-83 victory. Pittman led the Lady Railsplitters with 24 points, 18 rebounds and four blocks, Rawls had 17 points, six rebounds and four assists, and Ross Mathis (Greer, S.C.) scored 16 points. All five Anderson starters finished in double figures, led by Heather Jankowy's 22 points.
 
In the second meeting, which happened just last Wednesday at Anderson, the Trojans withstood a late rally to defeat the Lady Railsplitters 67-62. Lincoln Memorial trailed by as many as 19 points late in the fourth quarter before closing on a 16-2 run to trim the final deficit. Pittman had another big day against the Trojans with 13 points and 13 boards, while Guy had 11 points. Madison Floyd carried the Trojan attack with 14 points.
 
The Lady Railsplitters and Trojans have two previous meetings in the SAC Tournament. The most recent occurred in 2014, when three-seeded Lincoln Memorial rallied from an 18-point second-half deficit to force overtime. But sixth-seeded Anderson prevailed by a final of 71-64 at Tex Turner Arena to end LMU's season. The Trojans also defeated the Lady Railsplitters 76-46 in the quarterfinals of the 2013 SAC Championship, which they went on to win.
 
Anderson is led by SAC Player of the Year Jennifer Monroe, who is putting up 14.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game on 50.5 percent shooting. Monroe is backed by All-SAC second team pick Jankowy's 12.5 points and 4.3 assists per game. Floyd is contributing 12.1 points per game on 39.4 percent shooting, while Nakia Young (9.7 points, 5.0 rebounds per) and Alexis Dillard (9.6 points, 7.3 rebounds per) are also major factors.
 
The winner between Lincoln Memorial and Anderson advances to the SAC Championship final to take on the winner of No. 2 Newberry and No. 3 Wingate at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
 
The Lady Railsplitters tip off against the Trojans at noon on Saturday at Furman's Timmons Arena in Greenville, S.C. Live stats and video links are available at www.LMURailsplitters.com.