Opponent:
Salem at William Peace | Raleigh, N.C. | 5 p.m. | January 9 | Hermann Athletic Center

SPIRITS SEARCHING FOR CONSECUTIVE USA SOUTH CONFERENCE WINS
Salem heads into Tuesday's affair with William Peace looking for back-to-back USA South Conference wins. After posting an 88-64 victory over intracity rival Greensboro, Salem has the chance to post consecutive league wins for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign.

In 2017-18, Salem posted four straight league wins, between January 14-27, over Mary Baldwin (69-54), N.C. Wesleyan (84-71), Methodiist (67-53) and Mary Baldwin (86-45). The Spirits posted an 8-8 record that season under then head coach Britni Mohoney.

SALEM HALTS 15-GAME SKID TO GREENSBORO
Dionne Sampson exploded for a season-high 27 points, hitting 9-of-14 from the floor and converting 8-of-9 free throws in the process, while teammates Cree Bass and Alize Munn added 16 and 10 points, respectively, to help Salem halt a 15-game losing skid against Greensboro with an 88-64 victory over their USA South Conference rivals at Varsity Gym on Saturday afternoon.

Sampson, who has reached double figures in 10 of 11 contests this season, led a Salem lineup that finished 30-of-61 (49.2%) from the floor. By virtue of hitting 49.2 percent from the floor, that ties for the third-best shooting performance by a Spirits squad in a USA South opponent in program history. The last time that this took place was against Brevard on December 3, 2022, where Salem also hit 49.2 percent.

Bass reached double figures by hitting 6-of-11 from the floor, including 4-of-8 from long distance, in 27 minutes off the bench. Munn, who led all Spirits in rebounding with eight, delivered her eight double-digit scoring performance of the campaign by virtue of hitting 4-of-9 from the floor and two free throws.

The Spirits also received solid outings from Nykerah Engle, who tallied nine points and six rebounds, and Lily Gorum, who posted five rebounds. Ti'Erra Lee capped off the game with eight points in reserve, as did Aliyah Corpening.

MUNN DELIVERS TWO DOUBLE-DOUBLE PERFORMANCES IN 2023-24
Senior Alize Munn has been the only player to deliver a double-double performance in the 2023-24 campaign for Salem.

Through the first 11 games, Munn has two double-double outings to her credit. Her first came as part of a 17-point, 14-rebound performance against Trinity (D.C.), resulting in a 69-62 victory. She followed that by having 27 points and 10 rebounds in the clash with Agnes Scott, also marking a Salem win (72-54).

That capped off an impressive three-game stretch where she scored 68 points and grabbed 33 rebounds by earning USA South Player of the Week honors in an announcement from the league office on Monday, November 20th.

Munn was instrumental in helping the Spirits start a season 3-0 for the first time in program history, hitting 29-of-49 (59.2%) from the floor and 10-of-12 (83.3%) at the charity stripe. She also climbed the glass for 33 rebounds, including 15 offensive boards, while forcing 10 steals and finishing with two blocked shots during that three-game stretch.

SAMPSON MAKING HUGE IMPACT ON SALEM LINEUP
Graduate senior guard Dionne Sampson is making a huge mark on the Salem lineup through 11 games in 2023-24.

Sampson leads all Spirits with 184 points, hitting 63-of-162 (38.9%) from the field along the way, and has managed to convert 51-of-71 (71.8%) at the free throw line. That has allowed her to move her career point total to 859.

Sampson, who entered the season with 675 points to her credit, needs just 141 points to become the fourth different scorer with 1,000 points at Salem. The others include Sabrina Shepherd (1,493), Quntashea Lewis (1,208) and MiKayla Seivers (1,126).

Sampson took a gigantic move on Saturday, with a 27-point effort against Greensboro, as Salem claimed the second league victory of the season. That marked the third time this season that Sampson has eclipsed the 20-point mark, following a 25-point effort against Brevard (Dec. 2) and a 21-point outing versus Ferrum (Dec. 15).

Sampson has notched at least 20 points on seven occasions in her Salem career, including a career-best 30, which came against William Peace on February 12, 2022. Last season, Sampson also delivered three 20-point scoring efforts, which came against Mary Baldwin (22 | Jan. 25), Meredith (24 | Feb. 11) and Greensboro (21 | Feb. 21).

BASS CONVERTING A TEAM-BEST IN 3-POINT FIELD GOALS
Cree Bass, who leads all Salem shooters with 23 3-pointers on the season, needs just four more to move into a tie for 15th-most alongside Zy Henderson in a single-season in program history. Coincidentally, that would also mark the second time in her career that she has converted at least 25 3-pointers in a single season.

Bass, who has cracked the starting lineup on three occasions, has scored 15 of her 23 3-pointers as a reserve, including four in the triumph over Greensboro on Saturday afternoon. Those quartet of treys by Bass equaled her single-game mark for the season, which she established at N.C. Wesleyan on January 3rd.

ANALYZING AT THE PACERS
William Peace, as mentioned, enters the game with the fifth-best record in the USA South Conference. The Pacers are 4-8 overall and 2-4 in the league, winning three of those four contests at the Hermann Athletic Center.

The Pacers put the brakes on a four-game losing streak with a 70-60 victory over Mary Baldwin on Saturday, January 6th. William Peace took advantage of a 33-point outing rom Tanaesha Ellison, who hit 12-of-26 from the floor and 9-of-11 at the free throw line, while grabbing 24 rebounds to earn the victory. Ellison capped off her triple-double performance with 11 steals and added one block for a Pacers' unit that was 25-of-70 (35.7%) from the field.

Prior to the victory over the Fighting Squirrels, William Peace had suffered losses to Brevard (66-62), Johnson & Wales (75-46), Eastern Mennonite (63-42) and Methodist (100-74) in succession.

The aforementioned Ellison, who captured USA South Player of the Week honors earlier today, leads all William Peace scorers with 216 (21.6) points on the season. She has converted a team-high 76 field goals, resulting in the best shooting percentage (.450) of any player with at least 25 field goal attempts on the season.

Ellison is also the team leader in free throws made (61) and attempted (85), resulting in a 71.6 percentage at the charity stripe. She has climbed the glass for 107 rebounds, grabbing 76 defensive boards, averaging 10.7 rebounds per contest in that category. Ellison also has 37 steals and 10 blocks to her credit.

The top 3-point marksman on the team is Allye Woodruff, who has knocked down 24-of-89 (27%) from beyond the arc.

HISTORICAL LOOK AT WILLIAM PEACE
Tuesday's contest marks the 28th all-time meeting with the Pacers, with William Peace owning a 19-8 edge in the all-time series. The Pacers are 10-4 all-time at home against Salem.

Salem earned two wins by forfeit against William Peace in the 2022-23 campaign and claimed a 92-83 overtime victory on February 12, 2022 in the last head-to-head meeting between the two.

In that meeting, Dionne Sampson was the catalyst for a Salem offense that had five players reach double figures. Sampson became the first player since Tyler Davenport (Feb. 4, 2018) to eclipse the 30-point mark for Salem and just the seventh player in the NCAA history of the program with a 30-point outing.

Sampson not only established a career-high in points, but she also set a career-high mark for steals (12), capping off her first double-double and joining Tyler Davenport and Tamsi Echendu as the only players in 2021-22 to record a double-double. She was joined in double figures by Davenport and Alize Brooks, who tallied 15 apiece, Alize Munn (11) and Echendu (10). The victory moves Salem to 4-19 overall and 3-14 in USA South play.

Sampson finished 13-of-24 (54.2%) from the floor in her performance, knocking down 3-of-8 from beyond the arc. She highlighted a Salem lineup that finished 37-of-89 (41.6%) from the floor and 15-of-25 (60%) from the free throw line. The Spirits also owned a 52-44 advantage on the glass, grabbing 31 defensive rebounds.

ALL-TIME SERIES (vs. William Peace)