Box Score
Led by 18 points from Tracy Fosterling and 16 from Michaela Hawley, the Moccasins cruised past Florida Tech, 68-52, in their opening game of the NCAA Division II South Regional at Rollins Friday. The win puts the second-seeded Moccasins (24-6) in the semifnals for the second straight year. They'll take on sixth-seeded Valdosta State (21-7) Saturday at 5 p.m. Valdosta State knocked off third-seeded Ft. Valley State 59-47 in the opening game of the tournament.
With the exception of one brief lead at 6-5 by the Panthers with 16:50 left in the first half, the Moccasins were in control throughout the game. They reached a double-digit lead at 30-20 with 3:15 to go in the half, led 38-22 at halftime and never allowed the Panthers to get any closer the rest of the game.
The Moccasins shot 51.7 percent from the field in the first half, with Fosterling and Hawley combining for 22 points. Inserted into the starting lineup, Fosterling matched her season scoring high, going 8-9 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, and collected six rebounds. Hawley added seven rebounds to her 16 points that included 4-4 from the free throw line. Taylor Maldonado delivered seven assists.
Florida Tech (18-11) shot just 29.2% from the field for the game. The Panthers were led by Ashton McClairen's 12 points. Briauna Hagins added 11 points and 13 rebounds.
The last meeting between the Moccasins and Valdosta State came in the 1995 regional championship game, which the Moccasins won 77-73 at FSC.
Rollins and Delta State will meet in Saturday's second semifinal contest at 7:30 p.m. Rollins beat West Alabama 71-44 and Delta State eliminated Alabama-Huntsville 86-47.
