ELIZABETH CITY, NC – The Winston-Salem State University Rams (5-8, 1-3 CIAA) pulled out all the stops when the team took a dramatic 54-45 road win over the Elizabeth City State Lady Vikings (4-10, 1-5 CIAA), Monday evening. After controlling much of the game, the Rams had to dig deep to overcome a late rally by the Lady Vikings to secure their first Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) win of the season.

While the effort won't show up in the statistics, the Rams gave one of their best overall efforts of the season with the victory. As a team, the Rams totaled 54 points, shooting 36.0% (18-of-50) in the game, but the team held the homestanding Lady Vikings to shooting 33.3% (16-of-48) from the floor.

It was sophomore forward Briana who led the Rams to the victory as she scored five of her team-high 11 points in the fourth quarter when the Rams needed them most. She also added seven key rebounds in the game as well. Junior guard Trei Torain and sophomore center Kandace Tate both added 10 points each while junior forward Jeri Craine added seven points with five rebounds.

The Rams took control of the game from the very beginning with a strong first half effort. The Rams opened the game with a 6-2 start that included scores on all of their first three possessions of the game. Though the team would cool off as the Lady Vikings worked their way back into the game, the Rams would not relent. A lay-up from sophomore center Kandace Tate would leave the Rams on top, 8-4 with 3:53 left in the quarter, but the Rams would build no bigger lead for the remainder of the quarter as a lay-up from Craine kept the Rams on top, 12-9 at the end of the quarter. It was in the second quarter that the Rams would really take control as the team pushed its lead to double digits after a five-point run that included a lay-up from junior forward Taylor Boyd and a lay-up from sophomore forward Briana Arnold left the team on top, 27-17 with 1:54 left to play in the half. Both teams would turn things up on the defensive end as an ECSU lay-up was the only score of the final minute of the half and the Rams took the 27-19 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The Rams would stay in control of the game, but the Rams would have to earn it against an Elizabeth City State team that would not go away. Things looked good for the Rams in the third quarter as the team pushed its lead to 11 points, 39-28 with 3:33 left in the third quarter and the team would allow just one more field goal to the Lady Vikings as the team took a 39-30 lead into the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter was a dramatic affair as Elizabeth City State mounted a furious comeback effort with 13 straight points to leave the Rams trailing, 42-39 with 4:51 left to play. It took a lay-up from redshirt-sophomore center Jatzmin Johnson to break the scoring run by the Lady Vikings at the 4:24 mark. It was then that Arnold would make her move when she led the Rams' comeback with five of her 11 points coming on a personal five-point run that gave the Rams the lead, 46-43 with 1:58 left to play. From there, defense and clutch free throw shooting led the way as the Rams connected on eight free throws in the final two minutes of the game and held the Lady Vikings without a field goal for the final two minutes of play to seal the victory. In the end, the Rams were able to come away with their first CIAA victory of the season.

The win snapped a four-game skid for the Rams and gave the team its second victory in the R.L. Vaughn this season. The Rams will return home for their next contest as they host the Bowie State Lady Bulldogs, Thursday evening.

For more information on Rams women's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.