MARS HILL, N.C. (Nov. 25) – Junior guard Dominique Pacheco made a driving layup with three seconds left, as the University of Mount Olive women's basketball team secured a 49-47 victory in overtime at Mars Hills on Saturday afternoon in non-conference play.

With the win, the Trojans improves to 1-3 overall while playing three of their opening four contests on the road this season. Head Coach Wendy Lee captured her 350th career win at Mount Olive in her 24th year at the helm. Meanwhile, the Lions drop to 2-3 this season behind a 2-2 record against Conference Carolinas opponents.

Sophomore Kayla Jackson earned her first career start and finished with a game-high 12 points after converting four three-pointers in 36 minutes. Junior transfer Alexis Durham totaled 10 points, three rebounds, one assist, and one steal in 22 minutes in her first start with the Trojans.

Junior Tiandria Tucker produced six points, nine rebounds, and one steal in 24 minutes after battling foul trouble. Pacheco and freshman Anna Hendrix also contributed six points, while sophomore Jada Priebe grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds in 26 minutes off the bench.

In overtime, Pacheco put the Trojans ahead on a layup with 3:48 left before the Lions tied the contest at 44-44 with just over two minutes to go. With 1:02 remaining, Priebe hit a turnaround jumper to reclaim the advantage before Mount Olive eventually took a 47-44 lead with 28 seconds left. Mars Hill answered with a three-pointer to tie the game once again at 47-47 with 14 seconds remaining. Pacheco countered with a drive to the hoop and a layup to convert the eventual game-winner to escape with a 49-47 win.

The Trojans scored the initial points of the game after Jackson nailed a three-pointer at the 8:52 mark of the first quarter. The Lions countered with four unanswered points to take the lead before the sides exchanged points over the following four minutes. With the game tied at 8-8 with 3:19 left in the quarter, Jackson hit her third three-pointer of the contest to regain an 11-8 advantage. Senior Asia Smith followed up with a layup before Mars Hill converted a pair from the free-throw line, as UMO held a 13-10 lead. The Trojans started the second quarter with a 7-0 run behind a three-pointer by Hendrix to extend the lead to 20-10. After two-plus scoreless minutes, the Lions rallied with a 9-3 run to cut the deficit to 23-19 in the closing seconds of the quarter. Hendrix made another shot from beyond the arc with 25 seconds left, as the Trojans took a 26-19 edge into the break.

In the second half, the Trojans stretched the lead to 28-19 early in the third before Mars Hill responded with a 14-0 rally on five-of-nine shooting to take a 33-28 advantage. UMO made five of seven points over the final two-plus minutes, as the Lions held a 35-33 lead heading into the fourth quarter. After being scoreless in the opening four minutes, Pacheco made a layup to cut the deficit to 36-35 with 6:10 left in regulation before UMO eventually tied the game at 37-37 late in the fourth. Mars Hill answered with a huge three-pointer before Durham scored five consecutive points to take a 42-40 lead with 1:45 remaining. The Lions sent the game to overtime after making two-of-four from the line in the closing minute.

The Trojans finished the game shooting 26.4 percent (19-of-72) from the floor and converted 8-of-21 (38.1 percent) from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Lions shot at a 25.9 clip (14-of-54) from the field and made 14-of-27 (51.9 percent) from the charity stripe. Mount Olive claimed a 51-50 edge in rebounding with 19 points off turnovers, while Mars Hill totaled 16 points in the paint.

Junior Maddie Gillie finished with a team-high 11 points in 35 minutes of action, while freshman Tateyoina Harris contributed seven points, seven rebounds, one assist, two steals, and two blocks in 24 minutes. Senior Janette Hanni tallied six points, five rebounds, four assists, and one steal in 38 minutes.

Mount Olive is idle for a week before opening Conference Carolinas play on Saturday, Dec. 2, versus Lees-McRae at Kornegay Arena, starting at 2 p.m.