Bryan Defeats Rival Covenant 84-82

The Bryan College Lions (5-20, 4-12) scored their fourth Appalachian Athletic Conference victory of the year Saturday night at the home of their archrivals, Covenant College (8-20, 5-11). While the men narrowly edged out an 84-82 win, the Lady Lions finished with a slightly more comfortable 85-80 advantage.

The W puts the AAC-leading Bryan women at 21-6, 14-2 on the season, headed into their final regular season matchup this Saturday. The Lions will host King College, whose Lady Tornadoes (18-10, 12-4) have been a close second in the AAC all season.

Despite trailing 39-35 at the end of the first half, the Bryan men, with the help of a 22-point performance by senior forward Jerome Stancil (Raleigh, N.C.), rebounded to a 49-43 second half.

Senior forward Versell Wells (Kansas City, Mo.) also contributed 19 points, four assists and four rebounds in the effort. The Lions tallied 10 steals, 27 assists and 34 rebounds as a team in the much needed victory, which moved the struggling Bryan’s team up to ninth place out of 10 in the AAC.

The Lady Lions overpowered Covenant Lady Scots (17-8, 11-5) for the second time this season by hitting 17 of 21 free throws and completing 43.5 percent of shots from outside the arc.

Senior guard Sarah Coffman (Ocoee, Fla.) sank 20 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Bryan women, who outscored Covenant 40-38 in the first half and 45-42 in the second.

Coffman was one of four Lady Lions to cross the 15-point scoring mark. Brittany Swanson, a senior forward from Tellico Plains, Tenn., posted 19 points, while sophomore guard Katie Davis (Oliver Springs, Tenn.) netted 18 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Kellie Thurman (Livingston, Tenn.) contributed 16 points to the Lady Lions on the night.

Tip-offs for Saturday’s games are scheduled for 5:30 and 7:30 p.m.

Cathy Chapman can be contacted at cchapman@xtn.net.