HARROGATE, Tenn. – On Monday evening the Lincoln Memorial University women's basketball team took care of business as they routed Mars Hill 107-62 behind double-digit scoring from six different players. Less than 48 hours later they will face their toughest test to date as the 14th-ranked and league-leading Wingate Bulldogs come to town for a 6 p.m. South Atlantic Conference contest.

LMU enters the game at 5-3 overall on the season and a 2-1 in the SAC play.  The Lady Railsplitters are currently ninth the latest D2SIDA Regional Poll. Wingate is 7-1 overall and 2-0 in the SAC. They are ranked 14th in the WBCA Coaches' Poll and 16th in the D2SIDA National Media Poll.

Links to live stats and video of the game above or on www.lmurailsplitters.com. You can also hear the game on 91.3 WLMU locally or at www.913thegap.com.

The Lady Railsplitters took the lead off a Maggie Jachimczuk jumper on LMU's first possession and never looked back in Monday's win over Mars Hill. The Lions tied the game at 2-2 before LMU rattled off a 22-8 run to blow the game wide open. Shea Coker led LMU with 16 points, while Kyndall Caudle, Emily Griffith and Qua Hines each chipped in 11 points. Rachel Griffith and Karsen Sims added in 10 points apiece. Shermeria Quarles led the team on the boards as she came off the bench to grab six rebounds. They held the Lions to 28 percent shooting from the field while hitting 50 percent themselves, and out-rebounded MHU 54-34.

SCOUTING WINGATE
· The Bulldogs are currently 7-1 overall and 2-0 in SAC play. Their lone loss of the season was by five points at Lander. Lander is one of three common opponents thus far, with the other two being Clayton State and Mars Hill. Wingate won those games 59-48 and 91-49, respectively.

· Ann Hancock is in her sixth season as the head coach at Wingate. Before coming to WU she spent 10 seasons at UNC-Wilmington. Her record at Wingate is 113-48 and her overall record is 251-204.

· The Bulldogs return nine players from last season's 26-6 squad, including All-SAC performers Marta Miscenko and Danasia Witherspoon.

· The Bulldogs have four players averaging in double-figures, led by Miscenko's 16.0 per game. Caroline Averette (10.6), Danasia Witherspoon (10.5) and Courtney Robinson (10.0). Miscenko and Witherspoon also lead the team in rebounding with both averaging 8.3 boards a game.

· As a team, Wingate is averaging 69.1 points a game while holding opponents to 56.5 points per game. They are also being out-rebounded by a 9.9 margin on average and are out-shooting the competition 44.7 percent to 36.2 percent. They rank second in the SAC in six categories, including three-point percentage and field goal percentage.

SERIES HISTORY
· LMU trails in the series 16-9 and have a 5-6 record in the Turner Arena vs. the Bulldogs. In the Krystal Evans era, Wingate holds a 5-3 advantage.

· The teams met four times last season. The first two were decided by a total of three points while the last two, both in the post-season, were blowouts.

· In the last meeting, LMU and WU faced off in the NCAA Southeast Regional Semifinals in Columbus, Georgia, on March 11, 2017. The Lady Railsplitters opened the game on a 21-4 run and never looked back as they won 85-66 and advanced to the regional finals. Shea Coker posted a career high 25 points while Emily Griffith had 16. Sydnie Anderson chipped in 11 points and Josey Harding had 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Witherspoon led WU with 20 points. LMU's defense held the Bulldogs to 29.9% shooting from the field.

· In the last meeting in Harrogate on Feb. 4, 2017, the teams slugged it out for nearly 40 minutes before a desperation basket by Amber Neely fell in with less than a second left to give WU the 71-69 win. It was LMU's first loss of the season and ended a 20-game win streak. Megan Pittman paced four players in double figures with her 17 points and 15 rebound performance. Josey Harding also had a double-double with 15 and 10, respectively. Shea Coker chipped in 14 while Karsen Sims notched 12 points. Witherspoon led WU with 20 points.

SCOUTING LMU
· Head Coach Krystal Evans is in her fourth season at LMU. She has a 64-35 overall record.

· Shea Coker is currently leading the team in scoring (both two- and three-point) and rebounding, with a 16.9 points and 6.0 rebounds a game average. She currently leads the SAC in three-point percentage and is fourth in offensive rebounds and sixth in points per game, made field goals and total points.

 · Emily Griffith is second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.3 points a game. Maggie Jachimczuk is second on the team in rebounding, pulling down 4.1 a game, closely followed by Cameryn DuBose with 3.8.

· As a team, LMU ranks first in the SAC in offensive rebounds per game, third in rebounds per game, and fourth in points per game. They rank fifth in rebound margin, three-point percentage and made free throws.

· LMU also ranks sixth in the NCAA in offensive rebounds per game, 10th in rebounds per game, 28^th in rebounds per game and 55th in turnovers forced. Shea Coker is ranked in eight national categories, including fourth in the nation in three-point percentage. Emily Griffith and Rachel Griffith share a ranking in free throw percentage.

RECORD WATCH
· POINTS –Shea Coker is close to joining the 1,000 point club as she currently has 951 points. She is currently 23rd in the career scoring ranks, trailing 22nd place Amanda Jackson (1997-01) by seven points.

· FIELD GOALS – Coker ranks 22nd on the made field goals list with 369. She trails Brandy Brown (1994-98) on this list by six field goals. She also ranks 15th in career field goal percentage, hitting 48.2 percent of her field goals.

· THREE-POINTERS - Coker is seventh in made treys with 109 and is the ninth Lady Railsplitter with 100 or more career three-pointers. She trails sixth-place Kara Harris (2007-09) by five and fifth place Heather Brown (1993-97) by seven. Coker is also 11th on the three-point attempts list with 246, and is first on the 3-pt percentage list with a .443 percentage. Ross Mathis is 12th in made treys with 87 and trails #11 Katrina Ottesen (2013-15) by two. She is 8th on the attempts list with 266 and ranks 13th on the percentage list with 32.7%. Also ranked in the top 50 on the made three-pointer list are Karsen Sims (23rd) Rachel Griffith (tied for 38th) and Sydney Duggins (41st).

· ASSISTS – Ross Mathis ranks 35th in career assists with 142 and trails Ruth Simpson (1992-94) and Mollie Cooper (1994-97) by one. Karsen Sims is tied for 43rd on the list with 129 assists with Jill Breeden (1982-86). She trails Celine Cloutier (1994-96) by one.

· THE MOST IMPORTANT THING – Congratulations to Karsen Sims, Josey Harding and Sydnie Anderson on graduating Dec. 9!