MELBOURNE, Fla. – Trailing by as many as 12 points in the fourth quarter, Clayton State (2-2, 0-0 PBC) used an 11-2 run to tie the score before pulling out a thrilling 82-78 victory over Rollins (2-1, 0-0 SSC) in an NCAA Division II women's basketball game on Friday, November 15 as part of the Florida Tech Classic.
 
Junior forward Timi'a Swanson (Americus, Ga.) led the charge with a game-high 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field and a perfect 7-of-7 effort at the foul line while redshirt-junior forward Dejah Montgomery (Cordova, Tenn.) finished with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting.
 
She added five boards and senior forward Kelsie Towns (Butler, Ga.) dropped 18 points, missing just once in seven attempts. Redshirt-senior guard Christal Williams (Riverdale, Ga.) chipped in with seven points and a key three.
 
The Tars would dominate the first half, beginning with an 11-2 run to open the game and a 16-7 lead with 1:16 left in the frame. After closing the period up 16-10 they would use a 13-4 stretch over the first 4:21 to expand their lead, eventually settling at 31-16 with 4:35 left in the half. An 8-0 burst fueled by five points from Towns cut it to 31-24 with under three minutes to go before Rollins closed with a 41-26 lead at the break.
 
With the score at 45-29 just 1:37 into the third, Swanson would go off for seven points in a 12-3 run that narrowed the gap to single digits at 48-41 with 4:41 on the clock. RC would bounce back, however, as they headed to the fourth holding a 60-48 advantage.
 
Down 62-50 just 38 seconds into that period, the Lakers would get to within seven on three occasions before settling at 65-59 at the 5:54 mark. From there they made their move as they put together an 11-2 run fueled by Montgomery, Towns and Swanson to draw even at 70-70 with 3:48 to play.
 
The Tars retook the lead on a single free throw but a bucket in the paint by Montgomery followed by her stepping beyond the arc and draining one made it 75-71 with under two minutes to play. Four free throws and a jumper by Denise Daniels would then flip the script and fuel a 6-0 Rollins run that gave them back the lead at 77-75 with 36 seconds left.
 
Montgomery would knock down a pair of free throws to tie it up and RC's Jaylyn Harrison connected on one of two at the line for a one point advantage. It would be their last as Christal Williams buried a three on the next possession for an 80-78 lead with two seconds left. The Tars then proceeded to turn the ball over before following Towns, who went to the line and sank both to reach the final margin of 82-78.
 
Harrison led Rollins with 19 points and was joined by Yari Martinez-Toro with 16 points and three assists. Daniels added 13 points, four rebounds and three assists and Tianna Rosser had nine points and six caroms. Rachel Jablonski rounded things out with nine points and four assists.
 
The Lakers wrap up the weekend against Florida Tech in the final game of the Florida Tech Classic on Saturday, November 16. Game time is set for 12 p.m.

NOTES
Having served as Clayton State's head coach since the 2014-15 season, the win was Kaleena Coleman's 100th of her career in that role.