HARROGATE, Tenn. – Francis Marion University and Lees-McRae College both dropped NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Championship opening round contests on Friday. The Patriots fell to third seed Coker University while Lees-McRae fell to top seed Lincoln Memorial University.

No. 3 Coker def. No. 6 Francis Marion 83-54 - BOX SCORE
Coker, the 17th-ranked team in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) poll used a 10-1 run to open up an early 10-3 lead. Francis Marion trailed 20-11 before closing the opening quarter on a run. The Patriots scored seven of the final nine points to pull within 22-18 after 10 minutes.

Coker improved on both ends of the floor in the second quarter, shooting 60.0 percent from the floor while holding Francis Marion to a 20.0 field goal percentage. That resulted in a 49-25 Cobra lead at the half.

The Patriots couldn’t recover in the second half as Coker held Francis Marion to a 34.5 field goal percentage while shooting 53.4 percent to take the contest 83-54.

Kiara Croskey led Francis Marion with 16 points and seven rebounds while Uriah Jennings and Terriana Gray added 12 points and six rebounds apiece. Kristynn Knight led Coker with 16 points.

No. 1 Lincoln Memorial def. No. 8 Lees-McRae 68-53 - BOX SCORE
Lincoln Memorial got off to a solid start as the 15th-ranked Railplitters shot 45.0 percent and used runs of 7-0 and 9-0 to take a 24-6 lead after the opening 10 minutes. Lincoln Memorial held that lead throughout the second quarter and led 44-23 at the half.

Lees-McRae fought back in the second half, outscoring the Railsplitters in each of the final two quarters. However, it wasn’t enough as the Railsplitters held Lees-McRae to a 25.0 field goal percentage in the 68-53 win.

Braelyn Stillwell led Lees-McRae with 15 points while Nadiya Hairston added 13 points. Layla Tillery accounted for 11 points, and Sydney Gueterman pulled in 11 rebounds. Kamil Collier led Lincoln Memorial with 17 points and nine rebounds.