Site:
Raleigh, N.C.

Score:
Salem 95, William Peace 83

Records:
Salem (7-5, 3-2 USA South) / William Peace (4-9, 2-5 USA South)

Next Games:
N.C. Wesleyan vs. Salem | Winston-Salem, N.C. | 2 p.m. | January 13 | Varsity Gym
Methodist vs. Salem | Winston-Salem, N.C. | 4 p.m. | January 14 | Varsity Gym

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Alize Munn scored a career-high 35 points, one point off the program mark established by Satavia Taylor on January 11, 2014, and Dionne Sampson added 24 points of her own as Salem earned a 95-83 victory at William Peace in USA South Conference action on Wednesday afternoon.

The victory, coupled with an 88-64 win over Greensboro at Varsity Gym on Saturday, gives Salem its first back-to-back wins in USA South Conference action since the 2017-18 campaign. In January 2018, Salem posted four straight wins between the 14th and 27th against Mary Baldwin, N.C. Wesleyan, Methodist and Mary Baldwin. This season marks the first time that Salem has won consecutive USA South Conference games since that stretch.

Munn reached her single-game career-high by converting 15-of-23 from the floor and draining 5-of-7 free throws in 25 minutes of action. She capped off her third double-double of the season with 14 rebounds, grabbing eight off the offensive glass. Meanwhile, Sampson tallied 24 with a 7-of-18 outing from the floor, knocking down 10-of-11 at the free throw line to go along with six assists and four steals.

Salem also received double-digit scoring performances from Ti'Erra Lee (14) and Cree Bass (13). Lee finished 7-of-12 from the floor, while hauling in eight rebounds (five offensive) in the contest. Bass reached double figures largely off hitting a trio of 3-pointers, while knocking down two free throws to go along with nine rebounds.

Salem finished the game off by hitting 35-of-75 from the floor (46.7%) and 22-of-27 (81.5%) at the free throw line.

FIRST QUARTER
The Spirits opened the game by hitting 11-of-16 (52.4%) from the floor, along with a free throw, but William Peace held a slim 26-23 lead at the close of the frame. Munn provided Salem with a four-point lead in the early going, 8-2, before a trey from Sampson stretched the lead to 11-4 at the 7:40 mark. William Peace tallied six unanswered points, trimming the margin to one, before eventually evening the contest at 13-all with a Tanaesha Ellison free throw. Zia Prim provided William Peace with its biggest lead of the quarter, 22-17, but Munn answered with six points down the stretch to make for the three-point margin.

SECOND QUARTER
Salem kept its hot hand in the second, converting 7-of-18 (38.9%) from the field, coupled with three free throws, resulting in a 40-40 deadlock at the half. Munn and Sampson provided the first buckets of the quarter, evening the score at 29-all, but five unanswered by the Pacers resulted in a 34-29 advantage. The combination of free throws by Bass, along with buckets from Sampson and Lee, pulled the Spirits even at 34 with 6:18 remaining. Ellison was again the nemesis for Salem, providing the Pacers with a 38-34 lead, before scores from Munn and Lee evened the game at the intermission.

THIRD QUARTER
The Spirits continued their strong offensive showing, hitting eight field goals in the frame, and amped up their defensive efforts to limit William Peace to just 18, assuming a 10-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter. After each team hit the first basket of the half, Salem put together a 7-0 run, capped off by a pair of Sampson free throws, to forge in front 49-42. Ellison tallied four points of her own, slicing the deficit to three, but Munn provided Salem with a 51-46 lead at the 5:46 mark. Lee helped stretch the Salem margin to seven, 57-50, with a driving layup inside the four-minute mark. Leading by just four, 57-53, the combination of a Munn layup and a Bass triple allowed Salem to stretch the margin to 62-53. Sampson and teammate Nykerah Engle ended the quarter with a flurry of points as Salem built a 68-58 lead.

FOURTH QUARTER
Salem immediately stretched its margin to 12 with a jumper from Lee, but the combination of Ellison and Brene'a Day pulled William Peace to within nine, 72-63. Ellison added a layup, following a steal, with 5:54 remaining to make for a 76-70 contest. However, Cristina Battistini calmly knocked down a pair of free throws to provide Salem with an eight-point cushion. After a pair of Sampson free throws again stretch the lead to double figures, 80-70, Ellison singlehandedly scored seven straight for the Pacers to make for a six-point contest. Sampson scored the next four for Salem, which resulted in an 89-79 lead with just over two minutes left.