DURHAM, N.C. – Junior guard Chantal Thomas made a go-ahead basket with 3:05 left in the fourth quarter and then the North Carolina Central University women's basketball team forced University of Maryland Eastern Shore into six turnovers in the last three minutes to secure a 49-46 victory in both squads Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) opener Saturday afternoon at McDougald-McLendon Arena.
 
Thomas was one of three NCCU players in double figures with 11 points, in helping the Lady Eagles avenge a season-ending loss to UMES in the 2015 MEAC Women's Basketball Tournament in March. NCCU's first win of the season also ended a seven-game losing streak to the Lady Hawks.
 
Junior guard Morgan Jones bucketed a game-high 15 points, while also making four steals and dishing out a pair of assists. Senior forward Tisha Dixon nearly recorded her second straight double-double with 13 points and a game-high nine rebounds.
 
NCCU (1-5 Overall, 1-0 MEAC) held the league's top 3-point making team to just one trifecta on 13 attempts from behind the arc (7.7%). UMES entered conference play averaging over seven made 3-pointers per game.
 
UMES (2-5, 0-1) – picked third in the MEAC preseason poll (nine spots ahead of NCCU at 11th) – led for majority of the game, including an eight-point advantage twice in the second quarter. The Lady Hawks held a 25-22 edge at halftime with sophomore guard Moengaroa Subritzky scoring all eight of her points before the midway break.
 
A free throw by junior Monique Whaley-Briggs and a 3-pointer by Jones propelled NCCU in front, 26-25, to start the second half. The two teams battled back-and-forth from that point with UMES clinging to a one-possession lead for the final four minutes of the third quarter.
 
The Lady Hawks, who led 34-33, heading into the fourth continued to stay in front for nearly the next seven minutes. UMES pulled ahead 44-39 at the 4:44 mark of the final period before Jones scored on consecutive NCCU possessions to inch the hosts within one point. Thomas then drove to the basket and dropped in the go-ahead hoop while being fouled with just over three minutes to go before the final buzzer.
 
UMES had numerous opportunities at the end but the Lady Eagles defense stepped up in forcing the Lady Hawks into the six late mistakes. UMES committed seven of its 23 turnovers in the final quarter, while NCCU did not have a miscue in the last 10-minute stanza.

Thomas, Dixon, Jones and sophomore Kierona Morton then all made 1 of 2 free throws in the last two minutes to seal the 3-point victory.
 
NCCU shot a season-best 36.5-percent (19 of 52) and matched the taller Lady Hawks with 37 rebounds apiece. The Lady Eagles made 10 steals, featuring four thefts by Jones and three by Thomas that led to 10 transition points.
 
Senior forward Alexis Udoji, who is the reigning MEAC Defensive Player of the Year, highlighted play for the visitors with 10 points, three rebounds, three blocks, one assist and one steal.
 
Junior Tyshay Britten and freshman Dominique Adams came off the bench to provide the Lady Eagles with six rebounds each. Adams also scored four points. Thomas filled up the box score in her second start with 11 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
 
NCCU will entertain another MEAC foe on Monday, when the Lady Eagles hit the McDougald-McLendon Arena court against Howard University at 5:30 p.m.