CHARLESTON, SC.—Winthrop junior guard Aliyah Kilpatrick scored a career-high 28 points in a losing effort Tuesday afternoon as the Eagles fell to College of Charleston 77-63 at TD Arena.
 
The Eagles, who never led in the game and trailed by as many as 24 points in the fourth quarter, remain winless on the road as the season record drops to 2-9 while the College of Charleston Cougars snapped a three-game losing streak to even their record at 5-5.  The Cougars snapped a two-game skid against Winthrop and now lead the all-time series 26-3. 
 
The final outcome came down to three-point shooting and rebounding as the Cougars connected on eight field goals from beyond the arc compared to four by Winthrop and won the battle of the boards handily by a 50-34 final tally.
 
Kilpatrick's performance was overshadowed by a trio of Cougars who finished in double figures led by junior guard Breanna Bolden with 19.  Freshman Darien Huff was also a key factor as she scored a career-high 18 while senior Kelsey Booth added 15.  Booth also led all rebounders in the game with 12 while Winthrop freshman Arianne Whitaker had 11. The only other player in double figures for the Eagles was junior forward Erica Williams who finished with 10.
 
College of Charleston led 16-14 after one quarter and expanded its lead to 34-25 at halftime thanks to a 9-0 run early in the second quarter that gave the Cougars a 28-17 lead with 5:50 left in the period.
 
Winthrop fell behind by 14 in the opening 3:29 of the third quarter when Huff connected on one of her three 3-pointers to make it a 43-29 game, but the Eagles then turned up the defensive pressure and its offensive rebounding to outscore the Cougars 10-0 over the next three minutes to trail by only four points at 43-39.  But Bolden broke the run with a running jumper in the lane and Booth followed an over-the-shoulder shot by Winthrop sophomore Ezinne Mbamalu with a 3-pointer from above the key as they entered the final quarter down 53-35.
 
The Cougars opened the fourth quarter with a 10-0 spurt to take a 63-45 lead.  The advantage swelled to 24 points when Huff converted a three-point play to make it 74-50 with 4:08 left in the game.
Kilpatrick then scored Winthrop's last 13 points in the final 3:48 by connecting on three 3-pointers, a layup and another jumper just inside the arc to cut the deficit to a dozen points at 75-63 before Huff closed out the game with a short jumper to make the final score 77-63.
 
Winthrop will return to action on Dec. 29 when it travels to UNC Asheville to resume Big South Conference action.  The Eagles are 1-1 in league play.