RALEIGH, NC. — Meredith's second-half flurry was not enough to take down conference foe, Southern Virginia University, in Saturday afternoon's game. The Knights advanced to 7-3 within the USA South with a 59-55 victory over the Avenging Angels.
 
Sister duo, Alyssa McKrola, and Courtney Olson highlighted the box score leading the team with 31 combined points. McKrola recorded a career-high 19 points, shooting 57 percent from the field and going 3-for-5 from behind the arc. Olson followed with 12 points, knocking down 5 field goals along with a three and seven rebounds.

"It was definitely a scrappy game, but we were able to come together and came out with a win," stated McKrola. "Overall, we were the tougher team and we proved it today."

"Aly came in off the bench with such great energy, which is exactly what we needed at the time," exclaimed Olson. "She came in ready to guard their leading scorer, and shut her down! I was so proud of her, its super fun playing with my sister. I'm also proud of the team for staying together and playing with grit. We made a lot of mistakes, but we didn't stop hustling and we stayed together. That's why we were able to get the win."
 
The Knights dominated at boards, outrebounding the opposition 41-30 while getting a big boost from the bench, scoring 28 points compared to the Angel's three.
 
Both teams were stalemated in the first quarter, scoring 13 points each. Olson got on the board first for the Knights, sinking her lone three of the game. McKrola matched with a three of her own to even the score at six. The two combined for 11 of the team's 13 points in the first quarter before Aysia Foster scored a bucket with 18 seconds remaining.
 
Southern Virginia found their rhythm in the second quarter, outscoring Meredith 15-8. After a quick 5-0 run from the Angels, the Knights answered with a 9-0 scoring run of their own sparked by an Addison Newman three to go ahead 22-18. McKrola and Olson scored the remaining six points, taking the team into the halftime break with a 28-21 advantage.
 
The Avenging Angels collected themselves after the break, taking a quick two-point lead, 30-28, after nine unanswered points to start the second half. Abigail Snyder stopped the bleeding with a layup and a free throw to regain the lead 31-30. Maria Savvun wrapped up the third quarter with five consecutive points, making the score 44-37 heading into the fourth.
 
The Knights seemed to put the game out of reach, grabbing their largest lead of the game at 12 points, 49-37, off a Presley Heggie layup and free throw, but the Angels were not about to give up. Meredith came within three points of Southern Virginia, but a solid defensive effort from the Knights locked in the 59-55 victory.
 
Southern Virginia returns to Knight Arena for a four-game home stretch beginning on Saturday, January 28, against Brevard College at 4 pm.
 
For the most up-to-date information and details about the team, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knight_wbb on Instagram.