COLUMBIA, S.C. - CIU women's basketball looked to close out the regular season with a win against Bluefield University (Va.) Saturday afternoon, after dropping their last two games. The Rams came out hot out the gate and never looked back cruising to a 79-58 win. The Rams will end the regular season with a 14-15 record and a program-best 12-12 mark in the Appalachain Athletic Conference (AAC). 

The Rams wasted no time taking the lead as CIU would go on a 14-0 run to open the game, with Bluefield's first point coming from free throws at the 5:33 mark in the first quarter. 12 of those 14 points came from 3-pointers from Queeneka Howard, Madison Hatcher, and two from Zion Neat. The Rams closed the opening quarter up 24-9. Sophomore Zion Neat did not miss in the first ten minutes, going 5-of-5 and 4-of-4 from behind the arc totaling 14-points. 

CIU played outstanding defense in the first quarter and brought the same intensity into the second quarter, allowing just 11 points and forcing Bluefield to just 5-of-22 shooting. As a result, the Rams would take a 41-20 lead into halftime.

In the third, Bluefield had their best scoring quarter of the game to cut the Rams lead to 16 (58-42). But CIU would keep their foot on the gas with an efficient fourth quarter to take down Bluefield 79-58.  

Thanks to her explosive first quarter, Zion Neat lead the way with 24 points, going 6-of-10 from behind the arc and one rebound shy of a double-double with nine. 

Zhani Thompson played some big minutes off the bench scoring 12 points, and was a force in the paint defensively with three blocks. Madison Hatcher had a well-rounded outing, with 11 points, six rebounds, and five assists. 

Senior Keniah Watkins scored 10 points, going 4-of-7 and 2-of-3 from three-point range. 

What Coach Danielle Fleming is saying:
"What a great game, start to finish! We shot the ball very well and played extremely hard on defense. This one was for the seniors, and I'm extremely happy for them! Won not done! On to playoffs." 

Up Next:
The Rams will play in the opening round of the AAC Tournament on the road at Union College (Ky.) this coming Monday, Feb. 21, with a time TBA.