FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2-25-06

Men's College Basketball: No. 15 AASU 74, North Georgia 49
Women's College Basketball: North Georgia 74, AASU 61

SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Armstrong Atlantic State men’s basketball team held the Peach Belt Conference’s top-scoring team to a season-low 49 points in a 74-49 win, while the PBC champion North Georgia Lady Saints closed out their first season with an impressive 74-61 win in Savannah as the two teams split a league doubleheader on Senior Day at Alumni Arena.

]The No. 15-ranked Armstrong Atlantic men (21-6, 15-5 PBC) got a spark from an unlikely source on Saturday as sophomore Nick Bloemhof came off the bench to record a career-high 18 points, leading the Pirates to the victory. Bloemhof, who surpassed his career high by intermission with an 11-point first half, finished the night 7-of-14 from the floor, adding two three-pointers. North Georgia (14-12, 10-10 PBC) – playing without leading scorers Matt and Mark Causey – could manage just 30 percent from the field and only 4-of-22 from three-point range on the evening. Mark Trust tried to pick up the slack for the Saints, recording a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Buzz Wehunt added 11 points, but the Pirates stretched a 33-24 halftime lead to 15 in the first five minutes of action, opening the second half on a 10-4 run and never looking back. AASU will enter the PBC Championship as the No. 3 seed and will face Augusta State in the first round of the tournament on Friday, March 3, at 3:00 p.m.

In the women’s contest, the Lady Pirates (15-12, 10-10 PBC) jumped out to a quick 12-4 lead on the Lady Saints (23-4, 19-1 PBC), but North Georgia fought back to tie it at 17-all, then embarked on a 9-0 run to take control of the contest. The Lady Saints took a six-point lead, 32-26, into intermission, then used a 7-0 run coming out of halftime to push the lead to double digits and never look back. Katie Williamson led all scorers for the Lady Saints with 24 points, while Jenica Johnson came off the bench for 18 points. AASU was led by senior Audosha Kelley and freshman Lacey Willis, who each scored 11 points. The Lady Pirates will enter the Peach Belt Tournament as the No. 4 seed and they will face GC&SU on Thursday, March 2, at 3:00 p.m.

The doubleheader represented the final home games for AASU senior Alex Carter of the men’s team and seniors Kelley, Alicia Durham and Abei Irowa for the women’s team. Carter played two seasons for the Pirates after transferring from Miami Dade College and has scored 626 points and recorded 325 rebounds in his career, reaching double figures in 34 of his 56 games as a Pirate.

Durham leaves AASU as the all-time games played leader in Lady Pirate basketball history, playing in 118 games, and ranking in the top 10 in seven different categories, including ninth in points scored, seventh in rebounds, second in steals, fourth in assists, sixth in three-pointers made and fifth in free throws made. Savannah native and Beach HS product Kelley averaged 18.0 points per game in her two-year AASU career, fourth all-time, while Irowa made her first collegiate start on Saturday night against the Lady Saints, scoring two points and blocking one shot. The Nashville native played two seasons for AASU after transferring from Scottsdale CC in Arizona.

-Pirates-