HARROGATE, Tenn. – The LMU women's basketball team used a career-high 33 points from Emily Griffith to rally back from 18 points down to cut the lead to just two points late in the game, but Newberry hit their free throws down the stretch to pull out the 95-88 South Atlantic Conference victory over LMU Saturday afternoon in the Tex Turner Arena.

The loss overshadows the career day from senior Emily Griffith, who exploded for 24 of her game-high and career-high 33 points in the second half. She finished the evening with 33 points off of 14-23 shooting and a perfect 5-6 from the free throw line. She also had four rebounds, three assists and four steals.

"Emily is a player who really gets going offensively when she's getting steals and doing things defensively," said LMU head coach Krystal Evans. "Any time I tell Emily that we're pressing, she gets a smile on her face, so I'm not surprised she had a good game. She really did a good job both offensively and defensively."

In addition to Emily Griffith, Rachel Griffith added in 17 points while freshman Lindsay Proffitt had a solid outing with 15 points. Maggie Jachimczuk had her first double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds despite only playing eight minutes due to foul trouble.

Newberry had five players in double figures, led by Shelby Britten's 31 points, including seven three pointers. Regan McCarty added in 15 points, Kelsey McDermott and Meg Essex each had 14 points, while Courtney Lyons scored 11.

Newberry out-shot LMU from the field 52.9% to 37% from the field and 52.4% to 31.4% from three-point range. The Lady Railsplitters held a 42-40 advantage in rebounds and had 17 steals off of 29 Newberry turnovers.

LMU started out ice cold from the field, and the Wolves took advantage to surge out to a 16-2 lead. Emily Griffith and Maxwell then hit quick baskets to cut the lead to 10 points midway through the quarter. Newberry pulled back out again to a 26-12 lead before Proffitt scored five points for the Lady Railsplitters and cut the lead to 26-17 at the end of the period.

The teams traded baskets for the majority of the second quarter before Newberry extended the lead to as much as 18 points and led by 16, 47-31, at the half.

The scoring differential remained around the 15-point mark in the third quarter for several minutes with both teams playing at a very up-temp pace before Emily Griffith again sparked a run that cut the lead down to five, 62-57, with 3:20 remaining. The Wolves then took advantage of several free throw opportunities to pull the lead back to ten points late in the stanza.

Newberry went back ahead by 11 points before a Proffitt jumper sparked an 11-2 run in the fourth that cut the lead down to four, 79-77, with 5:09 left in the game. LMU had at least three opportunities to take the lead before five points by Essex extended the NC lead to eight points. A three-pointer by Proffitt with less than a minute left cut the lead to 91-86, but Lyons and Britten hit clutch free throws down the stretch as the Wolves held on for the win.

"I liked the fight our players had," said Evans. "I'm proud of their effort. Hopefully we can carry it over to Monday and protect our house."

With the loss, LMU falls to 6-6 on the season and 3-3 in SAC play, while the Wolves improve to 10-1 overall and 5-1 in the SAC. The Lady Railsplitters will step out of SAC play on Monday as local rival UVa-Wise makes the short trip down the Powell Valley to Harrogate for the first time since 2001. This will also be the final time LMU and the Highland Cavaliers will face off as non-conference opponents as UVa-Wise will join the SAC next season. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.