RALEIGH, N.C. (Nov. 23) – Saint Augustine's University (SAU) fought bravely in a back-and-forth women's basketball game against UNC Pembroke before falling 63-58 at Emery Gymnasium on Saturday.

The non-conference contest, featuring 10 ties and nine lead changes, went down to the wire. The score was tied 50-50 with five minutes left but the Lady Falcons were outscored 13-8 down the stretch.

The Lady Falcons (2-2 overall) fell behind 60-54 with just under two minutes left, but battled back within 60-58 on layups by Shankia Clark (Sr./Orlando, FL) and Angela Caraballo (Sr./Richmond, VA). Caraballo scored after stealing the in-bounds pass.

The SAU women had a chance to tie or take the lead with 41 seconds remaining, but misfired on a jumper. The Braves made three free throws to eke out the win.

Preseason All-CIAA selection Kaaliya Williams (Sr./Richmond, VA) led the Lady Falcons with 16 points and added five rebounds. Kamya Renwicks (Sr./Baltimore, MD) collected 11 points, five rebounds and two steals, and Quiera Gilmore (Sr./Charlotte, NC) chipped in eight points on 4 of 4 shooting.

The Lady Falcons tallied more steals (11-3) and outscored the Braves in the paint 22-14. The Braves countered by making 16 of 23 free throws compared to 10 of 16 for the Lady Falcons.

Melanie Horne and Aliyah Farmer scored 16 points and 15 points, respectively, for the Braves (4-2 overall). ShaNiya Lester grabbed nine rebounds for the Braves, who won the rebounding battle 47-37.

The contest was pretty much even the entire game. The score was knotted 16-16 after the first period and the Braves held a slim 29-28 lead at halftime.

The Lady Falcons moved ahead 43-41 on a Gilmore jumper to end the third period. The fourth period featured three ties and three lead changes before the Braves surged ahead for good.

The Lady Falcons play again Wednesday, Nov. 27, at William Peace University in a non-conference game between neighboring Raleigh schools. Tipoff is 2 p.m.