GREENVILLE, N.C. – The Campbell women's basketball team dropped its final game of the Pirate Thanksgiving Invitational on Sunday to host East Carolina, 74-54, inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. Senior guard Tonisha Baker (High Point, N.C.) was named to the all-tournament team and led the offense with 10 points, while sophomore forward Kiera Gaines (Mechanicsville, Va.) registered a team-high eight rebounds.
East Carolina (5-1) opened the game aggressively and went 7-of-10 from the field in grabbing a 18-4 lead at the first media timeout, 15:55. After falling behind early, Campbell (4-2) was unable to mount a comeback as it had a hard time settling into the game.
The Pirates continued to add to their advantage, extending it to 41-25 at halftime. Campbell shot .273 pct. from the field, while the Pirates made 17 shots at a .548 rate during the first period.
The Lady Camels dressed 14 players and all received playing time in the contest as the bench tallied a game-high 26 points. Sophomore forward Juli Osborne (Kingsport, Tenn.) made her season debut, posting a career-best four points and two rebounds.
One positive from the game is that the Lady Camels went 21-of-24 from the charity stripe and made their first 13 attempts that stretched into the second half.
The Lady Camels also out-rebounded their opponent for the fifth time this season, 33-32, and won the margin in the second half by plus-six as the score differential in the period was four, 33-29, in favor of the Pirates. On the offensive glass, the team posted 14 rebounds compared to nine for ECU.
East Carolina was led by Celeste Stewart with 17 points followed by Whitney Edwards with 15 and Britney Edwards with 10. Stewart additionally added eight assists as the Pirates largest lead of the game was 27 with 7:36 remaining.
Campbell saw seniors Jazmine Cooper (Fayetteville, N.C.) and Baker led the team with six second-half points. Gaines along with junior Roslyn Presley (Petersburg, Va.) helped to spark the offense with five-points each.
Eight players including freshman Jewell Yarborough (High Point, N.C.) notched points in the second half as the team shot .333 pct. from the field.
The Pirates ended the contest shooting .537 pct. from the field and a .429 rate beyond the arc.
The Lady Camels open the Big South slate on Saturday at UNC Asheville with a tip set for 2 p.m. Campbell plays Columbia (S.C.) on Dec. 3 as apart of Education Day with the contest beginning at 11:45 a.m.
