WINSTON-SALEM, NC – The Winston-Salem State Rams (10-13, 5-8 CIAA) faded late when the team took a hard-fought 73-54 loss to the Shaw Lady Bears (20-5, 12-1 CIAA), Wednesday evening on the annual Play 4 Kay Breast Cancer Awareness Game. The Rams played well for much of the game, but a late drought that included an eight-point fourth quarter cost the Rams the game.

Though the Rams put up a solid effort, the team could not match up with a Shaw Lady Bears team that shot a scorching hot 46.0% (29-of-63) in the game while the Rams were held to shooting just 34.2% (26-of-76) from the floor. WSSU redshirt-sophomore center led the way for the Rams with a team-high 12 points off the bench while sophomore center Kandace Tate added a near double-double with 10 points and seven rebounds. She also added three blocked shots and a pair of assists in the game.

Things got tough early with a slow first quarter, but the Rams clawed their way back into the game with a strong second quarter effort. Unfortunately for the Rams, Shaw came out the gates firing as the Rams fell behind, 4-8 after the first two minutes of play. After a lay-up from junior guard Trei Torain pulled the Rams to within one score, 8-6 with 6:45 left, the Rams soon found themselves trailing, 6-17 after nine straight points by the Lady Bears. Both teams found their scoring efforts late in the quarter, but in the end, the Rams found themselves trailing, 18-29 at the end of the quarter.

The second quarter saw a much better effort for the Rams as the team outscored the Lady Bears 16-13 during the quarter. The highlight of the quarter came at the 5:07 mark when a lay-up and free throw from junior guard Jeri Craine capped a 10-2 run by the Rams and pulled the team within three points, 28-31. The Rams would get no closer, however, as an 11-6 late run by the Lady Bears left the Rams trailing 34-42 at halftime.

After a challenging first half and a hot start by the Lady Bears in the third quarter, the Rams were able to make one last stand. After five straight points by the Lady Bears put the Rams behind, 34-47 with 8:24 left in the quarter, the Rams answered with six unanswered points of their own to pull within reach, 40-47 with 6:37 left in the quarter. For the remainder of the quarter, it was Shaw that was in control as the Rams were outscored 12-6 and fell behind, 46-59 heading into the fourth quarter.

The effort in the third quarter soon turned sour as the Rams faded late against the tough Shaw defense. The Rams could manage just four field goals in the quarter while Shaw went on to outscore them, 14-8. The Rams' first field goal of the quarter came at the 5:18 mark after the team had fallen behind, 48-69. From there, the Rams could find no way to get back into the game and ended the day with the 73-54 loss.

The loss drops the Rams to 10-13 overall and 5-8 in CIAA play. More importantly, the loss drops the Rams to 3-4 in CIAA Southern Division play and into a tie with Johnson C. Smith for fourth place in the division. The Rams will return to action, Saturday when the team hits the road to take on the Fayetteville State Lady Broncos.

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.