PHILADELPHIA - Senior Carlene Hightower scored a game-high 22 points, including her 1,000th career point, to lead the La Salle Women's Basketball team to a 70-59 win over Albany on Monday night in non-conference action at Tom Gola Arena. She added 11 rebounds, for her third double-double of the season, and five assists to her totals.
It took Hightower less than two minutes to join the 1,000 point club, but she did not stop there. The senior All-American candidate scored nine points in the first 7:30, as La Salle built a 14-point lead early in the contest.
The double-digit lead would not last however, as Albany used a 15-3 run over a six-minute span to pull within one at 25-24. Junior Margaret Elderton scored on a lay-up at the buzzer to give the Explorers a three-point halftime lead.
Albany (1-3) remained within striking distance through the first five minutes of the second half. When TaNika Thrower hit a jumper with 15:48 left, the Great Danes cut their deficit to one point, again, at 38-37. La Salle led the entire way, but Albany had the deficit at one point on six occasions, and had the ball four times with a chance to take the lead.
On this last time, Hightower converted on a three-point play on the other end of the floor to push the Explorers lead back to four. She would score seven points in a five-minute span capped by her second three-point basket of the night to increase the La Salle advantage to nine.
The Great Danes' Gia Sanders drained a three at the 10:22 mark to cut their deficit back to six, but La Salle responded with a 10-0 run over the next six minutes to take control of the contest.
Sophomore Jamie Walsh, who chipped in 14 points, including four three-pointers, started the run with a three and senior Alyse Hoover capped it with five straight points to give the Explorers a 62-46 lead. In the game's final five minutes, the Blue and Gold made nothing but foul shots; however, they sank 11-of-15 free throws down the stretch to secure the victory.
Elderton, a junior transfer from Maine, had a season-high nine points, while senior Melanie Gibbons scored seven points and grabbed six boards. The Explorers, who were just 15.0 from behind the arc at Drexel, Saturday, found their range in this game, hitting 7-of-17 (41.2%) from beyond the arc.
After reaching the 1,000-point milestone, Hightower passed Suzi McCaffrey (1982-1986) for 21st place all-time and currently has 1,018 career points. She trails Marjorie Rhoads (1997-2001) by 26 points for 20th place.
The Explorers, now 2-2, have the next six days off before returning to campus to face Central Florida Sunday afternoon. Tip off is slated for 1 PM at Tom Gola Arena.
