Anthony Jeffries contributed to this story

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Feb. 28) – The Lincoln (Pa.) women, self-dubbed the "Elite Eight", continues to roll in the CIAA Tournament.

The Lions struck Johnson C. Smith early and cruised to a 91-75 quarterfinal victory at the Spectrum Center on Thursday. They never let up against the Golden Bulls despite playing eight players.

Next up for the Lions is defending champion and nationally-ranked Virginia Union in a semifinal matchup for the second straight year on Friday at 1 p.m. AspireTV will televise the contest.

The Lady Panthers, who are the Northern Division champs, feature CIAA Player of the Year Shareka McNeill, who tied a CIAA Tournament women's scoring record with 59 points against Livingstone Wednesday. The Lions, in the semifinals for the third consecutive year, are ready for Virginia Union after winning two games in three days in the tournament this week with a short bench.
The Lions (17-13 overall) are showing no signs of running out of steam after dismantling a JCSU team that thrives on playing uptempo. The Golden Bulls can wear teams down with pressure defense and a deep bench.

But it was the Lions who attacked from the outset. They shot out to a 6-0 lead and never looked back against the Golden Bulls, the No. 2 Southern Division seed. The Golden Bulls won the regular-season meeting in Lincoln, Pa., 78-73 in December 2018.

"This is the best that we've played from the beginning all season," said Lincoln Head Coach Darrell Mosley, whose had an eight-player squad since January 2019. "We delivered the first punch. All year, we've been playing from behind.

"When we went up 4-0, and then [10-5], I think the light switch flipped on," Mosley added. "Our confidence just increased. Once we extended the lead, we never looked back."

Led by Kenzie Spencer (Richmond, Va./Henrico) and Kwanza Murray (Summerville, S.C./Summerville (Lackawanna College)), the Lions handled the Golden Bulls' pressure and knocked down 14 of 26 three-pointers for 53.8 percent. The 14 threes were a season-high for the Lions. By contrast, JCSU was 2 of 17 from three-point range for 11.8 percent.

Spencer made 6 of 10 threes for a career-high 29 points and added 12 rebounds for the Lions, seeded third in the Northern Division. The six three-pointers tied Lincoln's single game school record for their Division II era.

Murray pumped in 21 points and nine rebounds, and DeAshia Young (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Public Safety Academy (Labette CC)) tallied 12 points, seven assists and three steals. Jamari Tillman (Louisville, Ky./Doss) tacked on 10 points including 3 of 6 three-pointers.

"[Spencer] shot the ball with confidence and we shot the ball well as a team," Mosley said.

The Lions' lead grew to 13 (39-26) at halftime and stayed in double digits the second half, reaching 20 points at one stage. The Golden Bulls tried to rally, but the Lions answered with a three every time.
DeNajha Porter totaled 17 points and nine rebounds for the Golden Bulls, whose season ended at 16-13 overall. Blaire Thomas scored 15 points, Malia Rivers added 13 points and Rayeesha Hewlett contributed 12 points.

The Golden Bulls, who played 10 players, kept fighting after falling behind but could never wear down the Lions.

"We got outplayed. Bottom line," JCSU Head Coach Stephen Joyner Jr. said. "Lincoln came to play. We did not. We had 15 people that could have played. They had [eight] and outplayed us. It was supposed to be Arkansas 40 minutes of hell, but we did not have the movement or energy that we should've had."

The Lions were determined to finish strong despite feeling some fatigue late.

"I know I got tired," Spencer said. "But I want to win more than I want to lose."