GAINESVILLE, Ga.— The Montreat College women's basketball team went on the road to take on the Brenau University Golden Tigers in an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) matchup on Wednesday night. The Cavaliers came up just short, losing by a narrow 69-67 final score. The Cavs now sit at a season record of 5-10 (3-6 AAC), while Brenau improved to 8-8 (3-6 AAC).  
 
Offense for Montreat started quickly in the first with a swift jumper by Rymiah Sanders, setting the tone early. As the quarter progressed, the Cavaliers capitalized on more scoring from Sanders, hitting consecutive shots from beyond the arc to help give the team a slim 12-11 lead nearing the halfway point of the frame.  
 
Toward the latter stages of the initial period, Ania Sands contributed with a layup, and Se'Nai Camper added a shot from deep to maintain the edge. The Cavs' defense was pivotal as well, holding the Golden Tigers to just 15 points. Sarah Williams closed the quarter with a jumper, securing a 20-15 advantage for hosts by the end of the first. 
 
Montreat wasted no time by extending its lead to open the second quarter. Sanders drilled a 3-pointer off a feed from Williams merely 11 seconds into the frame. The team continued to build momentum with Trinety Dajuste adding to the lead thanks to a converted 3-point shot. The Cavaliers' defense did a solid job holding Brenau at bay, allowing only a handful of successful baskets while capitalizing on turnovers. A trio of buckets down low increased the Cavs' lead to 20 points (42-22), their largest of the night, with roughly three minutes to play in the half.
 
With the intermission closing in, Montreat maintained a robust presence in the paint. Brenau managed to trim the gap slightly toward the end, but the visiting team concluded the quarter with a confident jumper by Williams to lead 46–31. 
 
Coming out of the halftime break, the Cavaliers held a strong edge, but BU started to slowly chip away at its deficit with a series of effective scoring plays in the paint. Sanders responded with a triple to slow the scoring from the hosts, maintaining the Cavs' double-digit advantage (49-36). Despite Brenau's efforts to eliminate the gap, Montreat continued to respond with a layup from Tresalyn Roberts, which gave it a 53-43 lead at the halfway point of the third. 
 
As the clock wound down, both teams were in a back-and-forth affair. Sanders and Williams highlighted the scoring down the stretch, but a crucial free throw from Winkler with 15 seconds remaining helped preserve the three-possession edge. Brenau managed to score late, but its attempts were not enough to overcome the deficit through 30 minutes. Montreat held a 58–51 lead heading into the final quarter of play. 
 
The Cavaliers started the fourth period with a quick score as Sanders stole the ball and assisted Winkler for a layup. The team maintained a strong defensive stance, with Ayanna Varela and Dajuste contributing key rebounds. Sanders tacked on two makes from the charity stripe that kept the Cavs up 10, 65-55, with 4:27 left to go. 
 
In the closing stages of the contest, BU mounted a comeback, capitalizing on Montreat's turnovers to tie the game late. Dajuste and Sanders managed to keep the Cavaliers in contention with free throws and a late layup. However, Brenau's final push was decisive, going on a 14-2 run, which secured the victory. The game concluded with the Golden Tigers leading 69–67. 
 
The Cavs finished the matchup shooting 38.5 percent from the field (25-65 FG) and 26.9 percent from deep (7-26 3-pt FG). Defensively, they held Brenau to shooting 40.3 percent overall (27-67 FG) and 20.0 percent from 3-point range (5-25 3-pt FG). Montreat possessed a strong advantage in rebounds (47-33), but the Golden Tigers were able to edge out the Cavaliers in assists (20-16) and steals (9-5). 
 
Sanders led the Cavs with 28 points and four 3-pointers. She also collected a season-high eight rebounds to go along with three steals. Williams contributed 13 points and dished out a career-high five assists. Sands added a career-high eight rebounds and four assists, supporting the team's efforts on both ends of the court. Dajuste scored six points and tallied three assists. 
 
In its next game, Montreat will host Spartanburg Methodist College in an AAC matchup on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 2 p.m. The contest will take place at McAlister Gymnasium in Montreat, N.C.