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HAMPTON, Va. – Despite a surge in the closing seconds, the Hampton University women's basketball team couldn't get over the hump, falling 65-61 to the Pirates of East Carolina University Saturday night at the HU Convocation Center.

East Carolina led 64-54 with 1:04 remaining after Ashley Clarke sank a pair of free throws, and Hampton closed on a 7-1 run. Whitney Hill (Hampton, Va.) got the run started with a layup with 57 seconds to play, before Jericka Jenkins (Lancaster, Texas) nailed a 3-pointer with 36 seconds left and Breanna Jones (Springfield, Va.) followed with a layup with 24 seconds left.

But Hampton (2-6) never got the ball back, and lost its sixth straight game.

Hampton shot 29.8 percent (22-for-74) from the floor, while also going 5-for-15 from 3-point range. Choicetta McMillian (Fairfield, Texas) led the Lady Pirates with 16 points on 6-for-14 shooting and a 3-for-7 effort from behind the arc, while Hill came off the bench to score 14 points. Jones had 15 points and 14 rebounds, and Quanneisha Perry (Decatur, Ga.) added 12 boards.

ECU shot 43.5 percent (20-for-46) from the floor, with Kim Gay, Allison Spivey and Ashley Clarke each scoring 12 points. Crystal Wilson came off the bench to give ECU 11 points. Clarke also had a team-high seven rebounds.

Hampton out-rebounded ECU 45-40 and forced the visiting Pirates into 22 turnovers.

East Carolina (8-1) took a 33-25 lead into the half after storming ahead with an 18-7 run over the course of nearly eight minutes. Hampton took a 10-7 lead with 13:28 left in the half when Laura Lewis (Dallas, Texas) hit a jumper, but when Spivey gave ECU a 12-10 lead with a 3-pointer at the 11:19 mark, that jump-started the run.

ECU shot 50.0 percent (12-for-24 from the floor in the first half, while also making four of its five 3-point attempts. That helped ECU overcome 14 turnovers in the first half, as did a 23-15 rebounding advantage. Hampton shot 9-for-32 (28.1 percent) from the floor in the first half, making three of its eight 3-pointers.

McMillian led Hampton with 10 points in the first half behind three treys, while Hill came off the bench to score seven. Lewis and Jones each had three first-half rebounds.

Gay led ECU with nine points in the first half, to go along with eight from Spivey and seven from Wilson off the bench. Gay, Wilson and Clarke each had four rebounds in the first 20 minutes of play.

The Lady Pirates will return to action on Sunday, Dec. 20, when they head to Norfolk, Va. to take on Old Dominion University at 2 p.m. at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.