Box Score Maryville College's second half rally wasn't enough on Sunday afternoon, as Piedmont College earned the sweep with a 76-65 score.
The Lions outscored MC 21-9 in the second quarter to take a 38-23 lead to the locker room. The Scots cut that lead to as low as four in the second half, before another Piedmont surge secured the USA South victory.
Maryville shot 57.6 percent over the final two quarters, including a 66.7-percent effort in the third. Piedmont bucketed 13 free throws over that span to keep the game out of reach.
Maryville celebrated Senior Day on Sunday, honoring six seniors in Kelley Wandell, Shelby Hix, Elsa Eckenrod, Klaire Varney, Holland Jerrolds and Hannah Jones in the Scots' final regular season contest.
Those senior combined for 53 of MC's 65 points on the afternoon, as Varney tallied a team-high 25 points. Wandell and Eckenrod scored 10 each, while Hix added eight.
Maryville College will now look to the USA South West Division Tournament, as the Scots will host the first round on Wednesday, March 3. MC will face off with LaGrange College, as a time is yet to be determined.
The two squads played to an 17-14 first-quarter score, as Courtney Carruthers and Eckenrod scored four points each. Piedmont shot 3-of-5 from behind the arc to take the slim lead after the first 10 minutes.
The second quarter, however, saw the Scots go cold. MC shot just 2-of-9 (22.2 percent) from the floor in the second quarter, while the Lions went 50 percent (9-of-18). Piedmont outscored MC 21-9 to take a key lead. Varney and Hannah Seals combined for seven of MC's nine points in the quarter, while Wandell led a four-block quarter for the Scots with two blocks.
The third quarter saw MC's defense come alive to hold Piedmont to just 6-of-16 shooting. Varney posted a 16-point third quarter, going 5-of-7 from the floor with a pair of treys. That quarter saw Maryville cut the lead to seven, 54-47, as Varney closed the quarter with three-straight charity tosses.
Maryville would cut that lead to as close as five, 56-51, on a Seals' jumper at the 8:18 mark. However, a Laken Stiles 3-pointer at the 6:58 mark swung momentum back Piedmont's direction, as the Lions went on a 5-0 run to extend the lead back to double figures.
The Scots chipped away, getting as close as six points away with a pair of Wandell free throws, 65-59, before Lions' charity tosses helped secure the win down the stretch.
Maryville (10-2, 10-2 USA South) was paced by Varney's 25 points, as she went 7-of-12 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free-throw line. The senior bucketed a trio of 3-pointers.
Wandell had a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds, as she added four assists, four blocks and a steal. Eckenrod had 10 points, five rebounds and three assists, as Hix added eight points.
Seals posted seven points and three rebounds off the bench, as Carruthers added four points. Meredith Wart had one point, as Jerrolds had two assists and two steals for MC.
The Scots shot 44 percent (22-of-50) from the field, while going 17-of-21 (81 percent) from the free-throw line.
Piedmont College (14-3, 12-0) shot 45.6 percent (26-of-57), as they notched eight 3-pointers. The Lions added a 16-of-25 effort at the charity stripe.
Piedmont's Livia Skinner had a game-high 27 points with five rebounds, while Nakiyah Washington added 21 points, six steals and five rebounds. Lu Woolfolk had 13 points and seven assists for the Lions.
