LAURINBURG, N.C.— In its final contest before Thanksgiving break, the Montreat women's basketball team edged the St. Andrews University Knights on the road Tuesday afternoon by a score of 75-66. An impressive showing from beyond the 3-point arc proved valuable as the Cavaliers moved to 6-3 (4-2 AAC) on the year with their fifth straight win.
 
After St. Andrews capitalized on a pair of early Montreat turnovers to go up 8-3, the Cavaliers bounced back with eight straight points to lead 11-8 with 5:05 remaining in the first period. The visitors, who began the day 1-of-4 from the field, knocked down eight of their ensuing 10 attempts to end the frame on a 12-8 scoring stretch while shooting 64.3 percent (9-14 FG) and holding a 23-16 advantage.
 
Jessyka Leak captained all Cavs with eight first-quarter points. Defensively, Montreat kept SAU to only 4-of-18 shooting (22.2 percent).
 
In the second frame, the teams battled back and forth, with neither side earning much more separation from the other. Though the Cavaliers stretched their lead to as many as 11 (36-25) with 3:32 to go before the half, SAU closed the quarter with six consecutive points to trail by just five heading into the locker room.
 
Leak led Montreat with 12 points in the first 20 minutes and Caleigh Raby added eight. The Cavs outshot the home team 45.2 percent (14-31 FG) to 34.5 percent (10-29 FG) while limiting the Knights' attack from deep (1-10 3pt FG); however, fouls paved the way for 10 free St. Andrews points, which kept the game close going into the third.
 
Following halftime, the Cavaliers took advantage of Knights mistakes, utilizing a pair of turnovers in the early portion of the period to go on a 16-2 stretch and lead 52-35 midway through the quarter.
 
Back-to-back Raby 3-pointers capped off the initial run, and Aebri Graham, who went 3-for-4 from downtown on the afternoon, contributed to hot shooting by draining another two of the team's 10 triples around the Raby buckets as the visitors built their lead to 19 (57-38) with 2:49 left in the quarter. Graham concluded the contest with nine points.
 
The Cavaliers outpaced the Knights in the third, 21-10, thanks largely to nine of Raby's 23 points, to go up by 16 (57-41) with 10 minutes to play. The senior finished her afternoon 9-17 from the field and 4-5 from deep after scoring 15 points in the second half.
 
Though SAU closed the competition with a run to pull within as few as seven points late, the Cavs sealed the nine-point win with baskets by Vaniyah Petty, as well as free throws from Leak and Raby. Petty notched her first double-double with 10 points and a team-best 11 rebounds, while Leak poured in 19 points and grabbed eight boards.

"We are very proud of our girls for their teamwork this afternoon," said head coach Tim Lewis. "The team is taking steps in the right direction and we are finding ways to win."
 
Overall, 3-point shooting told the story of the matchup as the Cavaliers registered their most efficient performance behind the arc in a single game this season (43.5 percent) with 10 makes. On the other side, Montreat allowed only 17.4 percent shooting (4-23 3pt FG) from the home team. The Cavs also bested the Knights from the floor in general, connecting on a season-high 48.3 percent of their shots (28-58 FG) compared to St. Andrews' 33.8 percent (23-68 FG).

Lewis added, "This is a great way to go home and celebrate Thanksgiving with our family and friends. Aside from on the court, I'm thankful for the hard work this group of young ladies and staff put in daily."
 
Women's basketball returns to action next Wednesday at Reinhardt. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.