KINGSPORT, Tenn. — Mariel Mencia Martinez and Britta Schwengle both raked in another individual event title, and played a part in capping Saturday’s evening session with a close victory in the 400-yard Freestyle Relay, to highlight action for the 49th-ranked UNC Pembroke swimming team on the final day of the 2023 Conference Carolinas Championships.
The Braves totaled 611 points across the 4-day event in northeast Tennessee before settling into the runner-up position behind defending league champion Emmanuel (700 points). Barton was third with 539 points.
Schwengle, a mid-year addition to the Black & Gold, was named Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year, while Oscar Roverato picked up the league’s coach of the year honors.
Schwengle busted a Conference Carolinas Championships record with a dominating 10-second win in the 1650-yard Freestyle, while Mencia Martinez was business as usual in the 100-yard Freestyle, edging out the rest of the field by 0.25 seconds. The 400-yard Freestyle Relay squad trimmed nearly seven seconds off of its previous personal best on the way to a 0.03-second win over Emmanuel.
Softball splits at No. 12 Anderson
The UNC Pembroke softball team struggled to get the offense going in the opening contest against Anderson, but used timely hitting and base running to secure a victory in game two as the Braves split the doubleheader with the Trojans on Sunday at the AU Softball Complex. Anderson tallied four hits, including an RBI double in the fifth inning to take the opening game 2-0, but Chloe Hunsinger’s base running and a big double from Kadence Sheppard help UNCP to a 1-0 victory in the back half of the doubleheader.
The victory for the Braves (3-6) in game two helped snap a five-game losing skid and pick up their first win on the road. The Trojans (12-4) are now 3-3 all-time against the Black & Gold, but game two marked the first home loss of the season for Anderson.
The Braves will be back in action at home on Tuesday for a Round Robin against Adelphi (3-1) and Wingate (10-4). UNCP will face Adelphi at 11 a.m. for the opening game, and then lock horns with Wingate at 4 p.m. at the UNCP Softball Field. Admission is free to all home UNCP Softball games.
In the doubleheader opener, Anderson’s Carson Hobbs (5-2) pitched a no-hitter. The Trojans’ Lauren Brakovec drew a fifth-inning walk and advanced to second on a sac bunt from Maddie Carpenter. A double into the center field gap by Yas Laureano plated Bravkovec for the first run of the game. An RBI single from Morgan Charter put the Trojans ahead 2-0.
Summer Bullard (1-3) struck out six in six innings pitched for UNCP and took a hard-luck loss.
Charter was 2-for-2 with an RBI for Anderson.
In the nightcap, one Braves run stood up as enough to earn the victory. UNCP’s Chloe Hunsinger reached on an ill-timed error in the third inning and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Kadence Sheppard smacked a double to the outfield to score Hunsinger.
Marijo Wilkes had a hit for UNCP and Shelby Bandt and Carpenter tallied hits for Anderson.
Madison Dyson (1-3) allowed just two hits in a complete-game shutout, striking out four, to earn the win for UNCP. Trojans pitcher Lane Edgington (4-1) also allowed just two hits, with an unearned run, and took the loss.
Men’s basketball win streaks snapped at Emmanuel
Home-standing Emmanuel scored 28 points off of 20 turnovers and used a 28-for-33 clip at the free throw line, including a 21-for-22 success rate in the second half alone, to upset the visiting and 5th-ranked UNC Pembroke men’s basketball team, 81-66, on Saturday afternoon in the Shaw Athletic Center.
The setback snapped an 18-game win streak for the Braves (25-2, 17-2 CC), who also had their 23-game winning skein in regular season road games stopped as well. It was the 13th-straight victory for the Lions (20-7, 16-3) who stayed alive in the hunt for a share of the Conference Carolinas regular season title with the result as well.
Emmanuel shot better than 54 percent from the field in the opening half, while also utilizing 10 turnovers by the Braves, to fuel a 34-27 lead at the break. The hosts went 9-for-11 (.818) from the field in the first 10 minutes of the afternoon to eventually forge a 23-6 advantage following a 3-pointer from Tavarus Webb with 9:56 left before the intermission. That game-opening run was also aided by seven UNCP turnovers. The visitors scored seven-straight points down the stretch to signal a rally, and the Black & Gold grabbed a little bit of the momentum back by scoring the final two baskets of the opening period as well.
The Braves scored eight of the first nine points of the second stanza and made it a one-point game, 36-35, on Elijah Cobb’s fastbreak layup just less than two minutes into the latter period. Two free throws by K.J. Jones on the other end of the court, however, would spark a 13-3 run for the Lions over the next five minutes that opened up the lead for good.
Redshirt freshman Cortez Marion-Holmes scored a team-best 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting, while also chipping in one rebound and an assist.
Sophomore JaJuan Carr added 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers in the second half, while also tallying two assists and one rebound.
Amare Miller came off of the bench to accumulate a team-best five rebounds for the Black & Gold.
Saturday’s loss snapped a school-record 18-game win streak for the Braves. It was the first loss for UNCP since an 89-86 home setback to Francis Marion on November 30.
The setback also marked the first loss for the Braves in a regular season road game since falling on the wrong end of an 82-72 decision at Emmanuel on Nov. 23, 2021. The nation’s-best win streak had reached 23 games heading into the weekend.
Despite the loss, UNCP connected on at least half of its field goal attempts for the 16th time this season, while also accomplishing that feat for the sixth time in the last seven games. The Braves shot 54.5 percent from the field in Saturday’s loss.
The Braves will cap the regular season portion of its 2022-23 schedule on Wednesday when they suit up to take on Conference Carolinas foe Belmont Abbey (17-10, 13-6 CC) in the second half of a 5 p.m. doubleheader at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
Lady Braves fall to Emmanuel
Emmanuel shot better than 42 percent from the field and made good on six three-points on the way to a 60-52 victory over the UNC Pembroke women’s basketball team on Saturday at the Shaw Athletic Center.
The setback for the Braves (19-8, 16-3 CC) snapped a seven-game win streak and are now 8-6 when playing on the road. The Lions (13-9, 12-6 CC) are now 7-2 when playing on their home court and are 2-3 all-time against UNCP.
UNC Pembroke jumped out to an early 8-2 lead after an old-fashioned three-point play from Courtney Smith with 6:37 on the clock in the opening period. Emmanuel knotted the score at 14 apiece after a trey from Macy Passmore with just 43 seconds on the clock, but the Braves shot 54.5 percent from the field and held a 15-14 lead heading into the second period.
The Lions used a 3-pointer from Addie Penick just 14 seconds into the second quarter to take a 17-15 advantage. An 8-0 UNCP run fueled by six straight points from Kalaya Hall, gave UNCP a 29-23 lead with 3-1/2 minutes left in the half. The hosts shot 50 percent from the field, but trailed 33-29 as the teams headed into the locker room.
Kalaya Hall’s jumper in the paint padded the UNCP lead, 37-32, just four minutes into the second half. A 6-0 Emmanuel scoring run gave the hosts a 38-37 lead with 3:57 left to play in the period. UNC Pembroke was limited to just 22.2-percent shooting from the field during the frame, as the score was locked at 41 heading into the final stanza.
The Braves scored the first five points of the final frame and took a 46-41 lead after a trey from Kelci Adams with 8:50 left in regulation. The Braves struggled to get the offense going and Emmanuel put together a 5-0 run to tie the score at 46 apiece with 4:38 left on the clock. Courtney Smith’s layup with 1:27 remaining cut the UNCP deficit back to 53-52, but the hosts scored the final nine points of the game to stop any comeback.
Kalaya Hall scored a team-best 12 points and was 3-for-4 from the free throw line. Hall added two rebounds and had a steal and an assist in 29 minutes.
Lillian Flantos tallied nine points on 3-for-7 shooting. The redshirt junior pulled down four rebounds.
Kelci Adams provided a spark off the bench with seven points and three rebounds.
UNC Pembroke shot 32.7 percent from the field during Saturday’s contest. The shooting performance marked just the fifth time this season the Braves have shot under 33 percent from the field.
The Black & Gold scored 21 points off of Emmanuel’s 21 turnovers.
The Braves held the lead for 75.2 percent (30:05) of the game.
Neither team held an advantage of more than eight points.
The Braves will be back in action at home on Wednesday for the final regular season contest against Belmont Abbey (21-4, 18-1 CC). Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Lumbee Guaranty Bank Court.
