Limestone Women's Basketball Wins Conference Title, Advances Into NCAA Tournament

Coming off the program's fifth Conference Carolinas Women's Basketball Championship, Limestone College secured an NCAA Division II Tournament bid for the eighth time in nine years as the 64-team field was unveiled during the NCAA Selection Show late Sunday night.

The Saints will be the eighth seed in the Southeast Regional and will take on top-seeded Lander University in the first round this Friday, March 13, in Greenwood. It marks the third straight time that Limestone will face the Bearcats in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and the fourth time overall.

The Southeast Regional will also feature No.2 seed University of North Georgia taking on No.7 seed Clayton State University, No.3 seed Anderson University against No.6 seed Carson-Newman University, and No.4 seed Tusculum University battling No.5 seed Belmont Abbey College.

After missing the tournament last season following seven straight appearances in the Big Dance, the Blue and Gold rebounded with a 23-8 record this year and captured the Conference Carolinas tournament title with a remarkable run against teams that it combined for a 1-5 record against in the regular season.

The Saints opened the year with four straight wins, including an 82-69 decision against Lander on November 23, and will enter the NCAA Tournament with eight wins over their last nine games, closing the regular season winning five of six before running the gauntlet in the Conference Carolinas Tournament.

Limestone enters the Southeast Regional with four starters averaging in double figures while this year's team currently sports the second highest scoring average in program history with 76.2 points per game.

Senior Schekinah Bimpa (Loganville, GA), who was a first-team all-conference selection and the tournament's most outstanding player, leads the Saints with 15 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. She needs six boards to break Pam Wade's single-season program record of 330 set in the 1986-87 season.

Also with All-Conference Carolinas and all-tournament team accolades, sophomore Quin Byrd (Fountain Inn) is second on the team with 12.7 points per game and posted a career-high 27 points in the first meeting with Lander this season. She added 21 points in the Conference Carolinas Championship Game.

Sophomore Reagan McCray (Davie, FL) and senior Alexis Armstrong (Gastonia) are both averaging 12.5 points per game. Sophomore Laiken Wade (White, GA), who played a fantastic conference tournament, enters the NCAA Tournament with 6.6 points per game to go with 59 assists.

While the program has experienced a lot of success in the national tournament over the past nine years, senior Jayla Morrow (Tucker, GA) is the only player remaining on the Limestone roster with NCAA Tournament experience. She played in the regionals during her freshman and sophomore seasons.

Limestone will be looking to snap a four-game skid in the NCAA Tournament, including a string of three straight first-round losses -- two of which have come against Lander. The Saints last won an NCAA tournament game with a 61-58 win over Lewis University in the 2015 Elite Eight in Sioux Falls, SD.

The game time against Lander on March 13 has not been set yet. The winner of the Southeast Regional will advance to the Elite Eight at the Birmingham CrossPlex in Alabama on March 24, 25, and 27.

(Article by Limestone College Sports Information Office)