Daytona State tops Palm Beach 69-63

Following a tough loss to Palm Beach (75-64) on Friday, November 11, Daytona State secured a 69-63 victory at Palm Beach. The Lady Falcons were led by sophomore, Njeri Nelms with 19 points on 5-13 fg shooting and 3-5 3-pt fgs. Nelms also was solid in closing out the game at the free throw line for Daytona State, going 4-5 in the 4th quarter. 

Early on the game looked to be another close one with Palm Beach taking a 21-16 lead after the first quarter. The Lady Falcons would start the second quarter on an 11-1 run through the 5:27 mark of the quarter giving them a 27-22 lead. Palm Beach would go on a run of their own to tie the score at 32-32 going into the half.

Five quick points by Arielle Harvey to start the third quarter, along with a three pointer by Nelms, would quickly push the Lady Falcons out to a 40-32 lead wtih 7:20 remaining in the quarter. A three pointer by Palm Beach's Alexis Sparkman would end the Lady Falcon run. The Lady Falcons would hold the lead throughout the third quarter.

Going into the fourth quarter, the Lady Falcons would have a 51-48 lead. Palm Beach would tie at 56-56, but four unanswered points would put the Lady Falcons ahead 60-56. With 1:47 left in the game, Daytona State held a 60-58 lead. Palm Beach came down with a chance to tie the game, but a missed three pointer would see the Lady Falcons come down and score three points of their own, pushing their lead to 63-58 with 57 seconds remaining. Sparkman would knock in another three pointer for Palm Beach, pulling the score to 63-61 with 24 seconds remaining. Free throws by Ebony Hargrove (4/4) and Njeri Nelms (2/2), would put the game out of reach at 69-61 with five seconds remaining. A last second tip in by Alexis Jean would result in the 69-61 final.

In addition to Nelms' 189, the Lady Falcons also got double figure scoring from Arielle Harvey (14) and Ebony Hargrove (11). Destiny Arvinger added 9 points and led the team with 7 assists. Sophomore center, Ka'Neeshia Brown added 9 points and led the team with 12 rebounds. Also getting into the scoring column were Kaylee Barnard with 5 points and Lauren West with a halftime buzzer beater for 2 points.