Women's Hoops Gears Up For Wake Forest
December 10, 2004 | Women's Basketball
GREENVILLE, N.C. ? The East Carolina women's basketball team will look to improve on their 2-5 mark as they prepare to take on in-state foe Wake Forest (6-0) from the Atlantic Coast Conference. Senior guard Jennifer Jackson leads the Pirates in scoring with 13.6 points per game, while fellow senior Shanita Sutton is the other Pirate averaging double figures with 10.0 points a game.
About the Pirates: East Carolina (2-5) got back into the win column over the weekend as they snapped their four-game losing streak in the first round of the CPW's/ Atavola's Lady Pirate Invitational against Stephen F. Austin, 83-77. Senior Jennifer Jackson posted a career and tournament-high 34 points, hitting 13-of-21 from the floor and guided the Pirates to the championship game against nationally ranked Baylor. Three other Pirates netted double-figures led by Viola Coopers 14 points and a perfect 6-of-6 performance from the line. She also tied a career-high with seven assists. Junior LaToya Horton snatched a team and season-best 13 boards, 10 on the defensive end, as the Pirates outrebounded their fifth opponent on the season.
Against Baylor, the Pirates dropped their 10 consecutive game against a nationally ranked team, 59-80. Cooper led all Pirates with 13 points, while Shanita Sutton and Samantha Pankey each hit 12. Jackson fell short of her 54th career double-digit game as she recorded nine points in 23 minutes of action. For her performance, Jackson earned all-tournament team honors after averaging 21.5 points per game.
About Wake Forest: The Deacs come into Greenville on a six-game winning streak and post a 6-0 record, their best start since the 1987-88 season. Wake has four players averaging double-figures on the young season. They are led by sophomore guard Porsche Jones who is averaging 16.0 points, 4.7 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Senior Erin Farrell is narrowly missing averging a double-double with 11.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. In their las outing, the Deacs thumped Providence 78-44 beind five players with double-figures. Jones led the way with 16 points and eight assists while shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
The Series: This will mark the ninth time the two schools have met. The Pirates hold a series edge of 6-2, with their last win coming just a year ago in Winston Salem. ECU had three players in double-figures led by former Pirate Courtney Willis' 17 points and 15 boards, her fifth double-double of the season. Guard Viola Cooper netted 13 points and was a perfect 3-of-3 from behind the arc and 4-of-4 from the line. ECU connected on 86.4 percent of their free throws, hitting 19-of-22 on the day.
