HARROGATE, Tenn. – LMU hits the road to take on the Wingate Bulldogs Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m.  in a key South Atlantic Conference matchup.

LMU is currently 12-9 overall and 8-6 in SAC play and is fourth in the standings while Wingate is 16-5 and 11-3 in the SAC. Wingate's SAC losses are both games to top-ranked Anderson and at LMU in December.

The Lady Railsplitters are looking to halt a three-game skid on Saturday. They came oh-so-close to upsetting 20th-ranked Anderson in the Turner Arena Wednesday evening. AU had a nine-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but LMU rallied back to claim a 63-62 lead on a basket by Emily Griffith with 34 seconds remaining. The Trojans then took the ball and missed an easy shot that was rebounded by Lindsay Proffitt. But AU's Madison Baggett reached over Proffitt and was able to draw a controversial held ball call, giving AU the ball back. Baggett then missed a three-pointer, but Alexy Mollenhaur grabbed the rebound and put it back to give AU the lead. They then hit two free throws later to seal the 66-63 win.

Emily Griffith led LMU with 21 points and four rebounds, as the senior had a nice night offensively going 9-15 from the field, 1-1 from three-point range and 2-2 from the free throw line. Jachimczuk and Rachel Griffith each chipped in 12 points, while Newsome led LMU with eight rebounds and three assists.

Following this game, LMU will face North Greenville on Valentine's Day in the Tex Turner Arena.
 
SERIES HISTORY
· LMU trails in the series 18-10. Wingate has won seven of the last thirteen meetings and are 10-3 against LMU in the Cuddy Arena. Wingate is one of only two teams that LMU has faced four times in a season, doing that in the 2016-17 season. The other? UVa-Wise (then Clinch Valley College) in the 1973-74 season.

· In their last meeting in Wingate, on Feb. 10, 2018, LMU and No. 21 Wingate were neck and neck through three quarters and entered the fourth with a 44-43 lead, but the Bulldogs started off the fourth quarter with an 8-1 run. The Lady Railsplitters would cut it to four only to see WU go on another 10-0 run. LMU would cut back into the lead late, but fell 70-59. Emily Griffith led LMU with 17 points. Cameryn DuBose had a career night as she had her first career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, both also career highs. Shea Coker chipped in 11 points while Rachel Griffith led the team with six assists and four steals. Marta Miscenko had 28 points and 10 rebounds to lead Wingate. Caroline Averette scored 13 points and Danasia Witherspoon chipped in 12.

· The last meeting in Harrogate saw LMU explode for a 25-0 first half run that effectively put the game away early as they defeated then-20th ranked Wingate 75-67 on December 15, 2018 in Harrogate. Emily Griffith led the way with 23 points off of 10-18 shooting from the field, and a pair of three-pointers in addition to seven assists. Not to be outdone, her twin sister Rachel chipped in 17 points, four rebounds and four assists. Maggie Jachimczuk came off the bench and added in 12 points and four rebounds. Addi Kirkpatrick led all players with eight rebounds. Caroline Averette led Wingate with 20 points, followed by 13 from Danasia Witherspoon and 12 from Jordan Quick.

SCOUTING WINGATE
· The Bulldogs are 16-5 overall and 11-3 in the SAC and are second behind Anderson and one game ahead of Carson-Newman.

· Caroline Averette leads the team in scoring with 15.0 points a game. Courtney Robinson is second with 10.2 per game.

· Danasia Witherspoon is the team's top rebounder, pulling down 8.0 a game.

· Robinson leads the team with 3.0 assists per game, while Witherspoon averages 2.2 steals a game.

· As a team, the Bulldogs are outscoring their opponents 68.5 to 58.5 points a game, and out-rebounding their opponents by a +11.3 margin.

· Wingate leads the SAC in rebound margin per game and are second in points allowed per game.
 
SCOUTING LMU
· Head Coach Krystal Evans is in her fifth season at LMU. She has an 89-52 overall record.
 
· Emily Griffith and her twin sister Rachel currently lead the team in scoring, with Emily edging out Rachel 16.3 points a game to 14.4. In the SAC, Emily ranks fifth in scoring and assists while Rachel is tenth. Sydney Newsome has 8.7 points a game, while Dasia Maxwell has 7.2.
 
· Rebounding is a team effort this season as Newsome leads the team in rebounds with 5.6 a game, followed closely by Maggie Jachimczuk's 5.5 per game average. Emily Griffith and Dasia Maxwell (both averaging 4.3 a game) are not far behind while Addi Kirkpatrick has a 4.0 rebounds a game average.  
 
· Emily Griffith leads the team with 3.6 assists a game, followed closely by Rachel with 3.0.

· The twins are also identical in steals, with both and Emily averaging 1.7 steals a game. Newsome has 1.4 a game and Maxwell 1.3.
 
· LMU has four of the top 18 three-point shooters in the SAC, as Lindsay Proffitt (46.3 percent) and Sydney Duggins (44.2 percent) have flip-flopped first and second in the conference for most of the season, with Proffitt re-claiming first place. Dasia Maxwell ranks ninth and Rachel Griffith is 18th.
 
· As a team, LMU is averaging 75.6 points a game while holding opponents to 72.5. They are out-rebounding opponents by a margin of +6.4 a game.
 
· LMU leads the SAC in made free throws a game and offensive rebounds per game. They are second in three-point percentage, field goal attempts, free throw attempts, and total rebounds per game. They rank third in points, points per game, and made field goals per game; and rank fourth in rebound margin and fifth in assists and steals per game.

 
RECORD WATCH
· POINTS –Emily Griffith currently has 885 points, placing her in 27th place, and trails Anita Nelums (1992-95) by 23 points. Rachel Griffith isn't far behind at 33rd with 786 points.
 
· FIELD GOALS – Emily Griffith is 25th with 339 while Rachel Griffith is 37th. Dasia Maxwell is in 70th place.
 
· THREE-POINTERS – Rachel Griffith ranks 13th in made three pointers with 85 and trails Katrina Ottesen (2013-15) by four. Sydney Duggins ranks 22nd, while Dasia Maxwell is in 28th place. Emily Griffith is in 49th place.
 
· FREE THROWS – Emily Griffith is in 26th place with 186 free throws. She needs four to tie Brandy Brown (1994-98) and Heather Brown (1993-97). Rachel Griffith is in 29th place with 179.
 
· REBOUNDS – Emily Griffith ranks 52nd with 268 rebounds. She needs nine to tie Rachel Peach (1981-85) for 51st place. Dasia Maxwell is 64th, Cameryn DuBose is in 83rd place and Rachel Griffith is close behind at 85th. 

· ASSISTS – Emily Griffith is in 21st place with 214 assists. She needs three to tie former teammate Ross Mathis (2014-18) and Liz McQueen (1980-84) for 19th. Rachel Griffith is 26th with 176. Dasia Maxwell is in 74th place.

· BLOCKS – Emily Griffith ranks 27th with 33 career blocks, one blocks (and one spot) ahead of teammate and fellow senior Dasia Maxwell. Emily is four blocks behind 25th place Nickie Snow (1984-88) and April Hutsell (1995-99). Cameryn DuBose is in 34th place and Rachel Griffith ranks 58th.
 
· STEALS – Emily Griffith has 137 career steals, placing her at 17th. She needs one to tie Hillary Ross (2000-04). Rachel Griffith is in 27th place with 118.