FLORENCE, SC – Junior point guard Kevina Ransom scored a career-high 21 points and recorded a school-record 11 steals to rally Francis Marion University past Columbus State University 88-74, Sunday afternoon (Jan. 6) in Peach Belt Conference women’s action.

FMU pushes its overall record to 9-1, the best start since the 1998-99 squad that reached the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen opened 9-1, and the Patriots improve to 2-1 in the PBC.

In addition to her aforementioned totals, the 5-5 Ransom tallied five assists and five rebounds while committing only two turnovers in just 29 minutes on the floor.  The previous FMU record of 10 steals was held by four players, two of whom Pearl Moore and Kim Slawson-Hawkins, were in attendance at the game.  The last time the feat was accomplished was in 1988 by the late Cherita Linton.

Junior swing player Jennifer Dyer added a career-high 22 points for FMU, including six three-pointers, while senior guard Brittany Young recorded her first double-double of the season with 16 points and a career-high 10 rebounds.  She also handed out six assists.

Columbus State (5-5, 1-2) placed five players in double digits led by sophomore post player Hali Moore with 17 points and 12 rebounds.  Guard Ashley Stafford added 15 points and nine rebounds, while senior forward Monica Sicka recorded 12 points and nine rebounds and Maria Grimes and KeAnna Vicks each chipped in 11 points.

Columbus State led for a good portion of the opening half.  An 8-0 spurt by FMU knotted the score at 15-15, and with the score deadlocked at 24-24 with 5:44 left in the half, a 7-0 FMU run helped the Patriots build a 41-33 advantage at halftime.

Francis Marion led by as many as 10 points on three occasions early in the second stanza, the final time at 50-40 following a fast-break layup by Creshenda Singletary with 16:44 remaining.  The Lady Cougars gradually clawed their way back into the contest, taking a 62-61 lead after a Moore layup with 10:14 left.  Moore’s bucket would come amid a 15-3 CSU run that would culminate with a three-point play by Moore with 6:34 on the clock that put the visitors up 69-64.

A layup by Sicka held the Columbus State lead at four points (71-67), but Francis Marion would finish the game on a 21-3 run that included a trio of triples by Dyer and four thefts by Ransom.

After forcing its previous two opponents into 99 turnovers, FMU hounded the Lady Cougars into 34 on Sunday and the Patriots held a 46-10 advantage in points off turnovers.

Francis Marion plays host to nationally ranked USC Aiken on Wednesday (Jan. 9) at 5:30 p.m., while Columbus State travels to Clayton State University on the same night for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off.

1-6-08 2 pm at Florence, SC (Smith University Center)
FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY 88, COLUMBUS STATE UNIVERSITY 74

COLUMBUS STATE UNIVERSITY (5-5 , 1-2 PBC)
Moore, Hali 8-12 1-2 17; Stafford, Ashley 5-8 5-9 15; Sicka, Monica 4-10 4-4
12; Grimes, Maria 2-8 5-6 11; Vicks, KeAnna 4-9 3-6 11; Jones, Turelle 4-8
0-0 8; Ringfield, Lauren 0-2 0-0 0; Edwards, Jessica 0-1 0-0 0; Guy, Jamoya
0-1 0-0 0; Ferdinand, Chauntel 0-1 0-0 0; Beverly, Ashleigh 0-2 0-2 0.
Totals 27-62 18-29 74.
FRANCIS MARION UNIVERSITY (9-1 , 2-1 PBC)
Dyer, Jennifer 6-18 4-6 22; Ransom, Kevina 6-11 8-11 21; Young, Brittany
6-13 3-3 16; Dixon, Yasmean 4-8 1-1 9; Singleton-Bates, Sha 4-8 0-0 8;
Singletary,Creshenda 2-7 2-2 6; Grayson, Rita 2-4 0-0 4; Morgan, Shaquana
0-3 1-2 1; Allen, Ebony 0-8 1-2 1; Ruff, Evelyn 0-2 0-0 0; Guilliams, Renee
0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-82 20-27 88.
Halftime: Francis Marion 41 Columbus State 33
3-point goals-Columbus State University 2-11 (Grimes, Maria 2-4; Sicka,
Monica 0-2; Vicks, KeAnna 0-2; Jones, Turelle 0-1; Ringfield, Lauren 0-1;
Edwards, Jessica 0-1), Francis Marion University 8-25 (Dyer, Jennifer 6-16;
Young, Brittany 1-3; Ransom, Kevina 1-1; Singletary,Creshenda 0-2; Grayson,
Rita 0-1; Morgan, Shaquana 0-1; Ruff, Evelyn 0-1). Fouled out--Columbus
State University-Beverly, Ashleigh; Grimes, Maria, Francis Marion
University-None. Rebounds-Columbus State University 52 (Moore, Hali 12),
Francis Marion University 41 (Young, Brittany 10). Assists-Columbus State
University 18 (Stafford, Ashley 4; Vicks, KeAnna 4), Francis Marion
University 19 (Young, Brittany 6). Total fouls-Columbus State University 26,
Francis Marion University 25. A-404