After a trying start to December, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga women’s basketball team finally triumphed to end its losing streak.
And left nothing to chance.
The Mocs, whose five-game skid included three defeats by double digits — with the others an eight-point setback at NCAA tournament regular Florida Gulf Coast University on Nov. 30 to start the slide and a heartbreaking 67-66 loss at Bellarmine on Dec. 12 — were downright dominant Saturday afternoon at McKenzie Arena, with the two-time reigning Southern Conference champions leading almost from start to finish in a 93-34 win against Salem University, an NCAA Division II independent program from West Virginia.
UTC improved to 5-8 as the Tigers dropped to 1-13.
All nine Mocs available for the game played and scored, with five reaching double figures in points and senior Jade Moore scoring nine after missing the first 11 games of the season. The Mocs shot 56% from the field and had 23 assists, and they turned 24 Salem turnovers into 33 points while also outrebounding the Tigers at almost a 2-to-1 margin (49-25).
“I was telling the girls that we needed to get the monkey off our back, and they didn’t even know that term,” UTC first-year head coach Deandra Schirmer said. “We also needed to hit shots; we’ve been executing, and we will watch film and we haven’t hit anything.
“It felt good.”
UTC freshman forward Gianna Corbitt missed a layup on the first shot of the game, got her own rebound and made a putback basket at the 9:37 mark. Salem’s Cassandra Smith answered with a 3-pointer for what would be the only lead for the visitors — and a very short-lived one as Corbitt’s 3-pointer less than 30 seconds later at the 8:43 mark put the Mocs up for good.
The lead was 24-8 after the first quarter, 45-11 at halftime and 67-24 entering the final period. The 59-point win marks the fourth-largest margin of victory in program history
Corbitt notched her second double-double of the season as she posted game highs in points (17) and rebounds (14), adding three steals and a pair of assists. Brooke Anya had 14 points and seven rebounds for the Mocs, while Ava Card and Caia Elisaldez scored 13 each. Elisaldez also had a game-high seven assists, and standout veteran Sigrun Olafsdottir contributed 12 points and a game-high four steals.
Salem’s Smith finished with 15 points as the only double-digit scorer for the Tigers.
It was the final game of the calendar year for the Mocs, who have an extended break from competition. When they return to the game court, it will be for the start of their SoCon schedule as they play back-to-back road contests, facing Western Carolina on Thursday, Jan. 9, then UNC Greensboro two days later. UTC’s next home game is Jan. 16 against Samford.
Schirmer’s first UTC team has already been forced to navigate through considerable adversity, including injuries to guard Taylor Searcey and forward Kalifa Ford, who was a preseason All-SoCon selection, even before tipping off. Then the Mocs lost promising freshman guard Izzy McPherson to an injury after six games, and they played Saturday without senior forwards Takia Davis and Kailyn Farrell.
“We have not had it easy, and when you’re going through tough times, you also need mental breaks,” Schirmer said. “We’re going to have a tough road trip right from the start (of SoCon play), and we’re going to see where we’re at and where we need to get to.”
Compiled by Gene Henley. Contact him at ghenley@timesfreepress.com.