From Berry, GHC reports

Rhodes defeated Berry’s women’s basketball, 55-53, in a Southern Athletic Association matchup Friday night at the Cage Center.

Rhodes upped its record to 10-1 overall and 2-0 in SAA play. Berry dropped to 4-6 and 1-1.

In a back-and-forth second period, Berry’s Alexa Evans nailed a three-pointer to give Berry a 49-46 lead with 4:24 remaining. Rhodes responded with two baskets in the next several minutes to take a 50-49 advantage at the 1:57 mark.

Berry’s Megan Walsh banked in a shot with under two minutes to go to put the team back in front at 51-50.

With the game clock ticking down and the score tied at 53-53, Berry’s Chanlir Segarra was called for a foul on Rhodes’ Natalie Goodrum with 0.8 seconds left.

Goodrum knocked down both foul shots to seal the deal.

“We knew it was going to be a battle against them,” said Berry head coach Stephanie Dunn. “The last four minutes we hit big shots; they hit big shots. It went back and forth.”

Berry’s Walsh led the team with 17 points along with nine rebounds off the bench, while freshman Tara Mullinax totaled 13 points and nine boards. Rhodes’ Lauren Avant had a game-high 22 points, and Amy Handleman grabbed 11 rebounds.

In the first half, Berry faced a deficit as large as nine points after three consecutive Rhodes three-pointers put them ahead 20-11.

By the halftime buzzer, however, Berry rallied to take a 28-26 lead. Mullinax paced Berry with 11 first-half points.

Berry will return to its home court Sunday afternoon against another SAA opponent, Hendrix, at 1 p.m.

RHODES MEN 63, BERRY 56

After rallying to seize the lead, Berry men’s basketball team came up short against Southern Athletic Association opponent Rhodes, 63-56, in a Friday evening game at the Cage Center.

Rhodes improves to 7-5 overall and 2-0 in SAA matchups. Berry falls to 2-9 and 0-2.

After a first half that saw the team tally only six rebounds, Berry rallied from 13 points down to nab a one-point lead at 53-52 with less than eight minutes remaining.

“It was about just playing with some passion and more energy,” said Berry Head Coach Jeff Haarlow. “I thought we moved the ball better.”

In the end, Rhodes held on for the win.

Mac Whalen led Berry’s offensive charge with 18 points. Mac Howard poured in a career-high 12 points and Jonathan Abrams added 11 for the home team. Rhodes’ Andrew Galow drained nine out of 11 of his field goal attempts on his way to a game-high 24 points. Theo Hartwell added 14 points.

Berry will return to the Cage Center on Sunday afternoon in another conference showdown with Hendrix at 3 p.m.