Next Game: Salem vs. Meredith | February 11 | Varsity Gym | Winston-Salem, N.C. | 3:00 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT (vs. Greensboro)
Salem rebounded from a difficult shooting first half to outscore Pfeiffer 47-34 in the second half, but it was a pair of conversions by Alexis Bynum and Hannah Isley that proved to be the difference as the Falcons claimed a 78-73 win in USA South Conference action on Friday evening at Merner Gym.
The hard-charging Spirits were trailing by 12 points entering the final frame and opened the quarter with a 12-2 run that sliced the Pfeiffer margin to 65-63. The Falcons used a 5-0 run to stretch the margin to seven, 70-63, capped off by a Tanaesha Ellison 3-pointer. However, the scrappy Spirits capitalized on two jumpers from Cree Bass to trim the deficit to 70-68 with 2:17. Timely scores from Bynum and Isley down the stretch offset five points from Dionne Sampson to help Pfeiffer complete the five-point victory.
Sampson led four Salem shooters in double figures with 16 points, hitting 4-of-14 from the floor and 7-of-11 at the free throw line. Sampson also climbed the glass for 10 rebounds, resulting in her first double-double of the season. Teammates Alize Munn (15), Cree Bass (14) and Tamsi Echendu (11) also reached double figures for Salem, highlighting a Salem offense that finished 28-of-65 (43.1%) from the floor and 13-of-24 (54.2%) at the free throw line.
Minnie Griffin established herself in the paint for Salem with a game-high 13 rebounds (10 defensive), while Echendu was active with nine. Bass forced a team-high six steals, while Sampson was a catalyst for the offensive attack with five assists.
LAST TWO GAMES OF THE REGULAR SEASON
The Spirits will complete the 2022-23 regular season with a pair of home games against Meredith and Brevard. The game between the Spirits and Avenging Angels, which was moved from Tuesday, February 14th, to Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m., begins the final regular season stretch of the season.
Salem was credited with three forfeit victories by the USA South Conference due to William Peace and Mary Baldwin cancelling the remainder of the season.
This means that the Spirits are locked into the USA South Conference Tournament and have secured the eighth seed.
The regular season concludes on Saturday, February 18th, with a clash against Brevard.
ALL-TIME SERIES BREAKDOWN VERSUS MEREDITH
This weekend, the Spirits are looking to earn their second split in as many seasons when they face Meredith at Varsity Gym. The Avenging Angels took the first game of the season by a 70-61 margin, when the two clashed in Raleigh, N.C., on January 18th.
However, Salem is looking to earn the season split, as it did in the 2021-22 campaign. The Spirits earned the victory (74-61) at Varsity Gym on January 30, 2022, and the following afternoon suffered a 66-62 setback to complete the series.
Meredith owns a slight 9-6 edge in the head-to-head series, but Salem has posted four wins at Varsity Gym and two in Raleigh since the two teams first met on November 19, 2007.
SPIRITS STATISTICAL LEADERS
Dionne Sampson is one of six Salem players with 100 points on the season, leading the way with 255 points (12.8 ppg) after eclipsing double-digit points in 18 of 20 contests. Sampson has put together a string of eight double-digit scoring performances for Salem, which began with a 14-point showing against Southern Virginia on January 10th.
Alize Munn sits one point away from reaching 200 on the season, hitting a team-high 84 field goals over the course of the campaign. Munn has been one of the most consistent shooters for the Spirits this season, converting 49.1 percent (84-171) of her attempts. Teammate Tamsi Echendu leads the way in shooting percentage with a 53 percent accuracy, knocking down 62-of-117 shots along the way. Echendu is third in scoring with 178 points, while Cree Bass (158), Minnie Griffin (124) and Alize Brooks (107) also have at least 100 points.
Echendu has also been a force in the paint with a team-high 128 rebounds, including 59 on the offensive glass. Munn has also grabbed triple-digit rebounds (103) for Salem this year, while leading the team in blocked shots with 18. Sampson has been an active defender for the Spirits, forcing a team-high 50 steals, while handing out 55 assists along the way.
ANALYZING MEREDITH'S SEASON IN 2022-23
Meredith enters the weekend with a 7-14 overall mark and a 9-7 record in USA South Conference action. The Avenging Angels have claimed two wins in their last three games, which came against Mary Baldwin (57-44) and Brevard (62-49).
Kate Perko has been the go-to source of offense for Meredith with 372 points (17.7 ppg) this season, topping the double-digit mark in 18 of 21 games for the Avenging Angels. Since January 4th, when Meredith tangled with Greensboro in league play, Perko has scored at least 20 points on seven occasions, including a single-game season-high 34 points at Pfeiffer on January 7th.
Perko has knocked down 158-of-371 shots (42.6%) on the season, leading the way in total field goals, total field goals made and shooting percentage for the Avenging Angels. She has also converted 53-of-83 (63.9%) at the charity stripe, also topping the Meredith lineup.
Along with leading the way for the team in scoring, Perko has dominated the post with a team-best 325 rebounds, including 226 defensive boards. She also leads the team in steals (24) and blocks).