CHARLOTTE, NC – The Winston-Salem State University Rams (12-15, 7-9 CIAA) got a huge win, Wednesday evening, when the team took a clutch 63-61 road win over the Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls (16-10, 11-4 CIAA). After taking a nine-point halftime deficit, the Rams stormed back with a big third quarter effort and played some clutch fourth quarter defense to claim the victory.

The Rams used a tough team effort to claim the win. As a team, the Rams had a hot shooting night, going 23-of-49 from the floor, but they had to go through a strong Golden Bulls defense to do it. WSSU sophomore forward O'Shea Hatley led the Rams to the win with a career-high 18 points in the game, including several of the biggest shots of the night. Fellow sophomore guard Melody Prichard added 11 points as well. The Rams were dominant in the paint as they held a 44-30 rebounding edge over the Golden Bulls. It was graduate forward Brandi Segars who pulled in 10 rebounds to lead the team.

The first half turned out to be a tale of two quarter for the Rams as an impressive first quarter turned into some second quarter struggles to leave the team trailing at the half. After starting the game with an impressive first quarter performance, the Rams struggled through much of the second quarter to take a deficit into the locker room at halftime. The Rams allowed the Golden Bulls to jump out to a 6-2 lead early in the first quarter, but the team kicked things into gear in a major way when they went on a 13-4 run that included six points from sophomore forward O'Shea Hatley and five points from sophomore guard Melody Prichard and gave the Rams a 15-10 lead at the end of the quarter. For the quarter, the Rams held the Golden Bulls to just four field goals. In the second quarter, the Rams could not maintain their momentum as the team was outscored 23-9 during the quarter. The quarter included three-pointers from senior guard Taylor Daniels and sophomore guard Melody Prichard, but the Rams could not keep things going as they went to the locker room with a 33-24 deficit.

The real excitement in the game came in the second half where the Rams and the Golden Bulls demonstrated some tough, hard-fought play for the final two quarters of the game. The action began with a thrilling third quarter of play. Through the midway point of the third quarter, the Rams trailed the Golden Bulls, 42-31 before WSSU began its dramatic comeback. The Rams went on a nine-point run to cut their deficit down to just four points, 44-40, after a Hatley lay-up with 3:07 left in the quarter. From there, the Rams outscored the Golden Bulls 6-3 in the final three minutes of the quarter with Hatley scoring four of the team's six points, including hitting a jumper with six seconds left in the quarter to give WSSU a 46-45 lead heading into the fourth quarter.   

The fourth quarter was just as thrilling as the third quarter with the Rams and the Golden Bulls playing hard until the final buzzer sounded. After allowing a JCSU score in the opening minutes of the quarter to fall behind, 47-46, Hatley struck again with a lay-up at the 8:40 mark that kept the Rams in front, 48-47. From there, the Rams took control of the game with eight straight points, including a Hatley three-pointer with 6:41 left that gave the Rams a 55-48 lead, their largest lead of the game. However, Johnson C. Smith would not give in as the Rams allowed the Golden Bulls to tie the game, 59-59 with just under two minutes left to play. The game remained tied until Prichard hit the biggest shot of the night with a lay-up at the 1:45 mark that gave the Rams a 61-59 lead. From there, it was the WSSU defense that keyed the win. The Rams allowed the Golden Bulls to tie the game once again, 61-61, but it was the last score that the Rams would allow as senior guard Jahlia Williams hit a clutch free throw that put the Rams on top, 62-61 with 00:20 left to play. After forcing another missed shot by the Golden Bulls, it was Segars who sealed the game with a free throw of her own with one second left.  Appropriately enough, a steal by Williams put away the win for the Rams.

With the win, the Rams improve to 12-15 overall and 7-9 in Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) play. The team will return home for their regular season finale when the team hosts the Livingstone College Blue Bears in a Senior Day game at 2:00 p.m. 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.