GREENWOOD – Lander's Alexis Armstrong posted her eighth double-double of the season and hit two free throws with three seconds left as the Lady Bearcats held off Peach Belt Conference rival Flagler College 65-60 Saturday afternoon at Horne Arena.

Lander improved to 8-7 overall and 3-3 in the Peach Belt. The Saints fell to 4-9, 2-4.

Armstrong had 12 points, and game highs with 14 rebounds and six assists.

Jamelia James added 13 points for the Lady Bearcats including eight during a key 13-0 Lander run in the first half.

Kayla West and Portia McCray added 11 points apiece for the Lady Bearcats while Alyssia Watkins collected eight steals and two blocked shots.

Shelbi Lindsey and Treva Mason each posted double-doubles for the Saints, both collecting 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Rodnecia Brown scored 10 points for Flagler while Passhayla Williams just missed a double-double with nine points and nine boards. Latesha Johnson paced the Saints with four assists.

The two teams each shot 34 percent from the floor and had almost identical free throw shooting stats. But Flagler had a 54-42 rebounding edge.

Lander made 23 of 67 shots from the floor (34 percent), 12 of 21 free throws (57 percent) and seven of 26 from 3-point range (27 percent).

Flagler hit 22 of 65 shots from the floor (34 percent), 12 of 20 free throws (60 percent) and four of 16 from behind the arc (25 percent).

The game was tied at 13-all at the halfway point of the first half. But the Lady Bearcats took off from there, scoring 13 unanswered points in just two minutes and 11 seconds to take a 26-13 lead. It would be a lead they would never relinquish.

James started the run with a 3-pointer, making it 16-13 at the 9:39 mark. James followed with a fast-break layup off a pass from Armstrong, James hit another 3, West knocked down a 3, and Watkins made two free throws for a 26-13 lead with 7:28 left.

Flagler's Lindsey hit two free throws to end the run, and teammate Williams scored to pull the visitors within 26-17 at the six-minute mark. But Lander's lead grew back to 13, 32-19, on West's 3 from the right corner, a free throw by Watkins, and basket by James.

Ashleigh Zandi's basket with 2:56 left would be the final Lady Bearcat points of the first half and they would lead 34-23 at the intermission.

Zandi hit a pair of 3s early in the second half, giving Lander its biggest lead of the game at 14 points, 43-29, at the 17-minute mark with the second of those 3s. Armstrong's tip-in extended the lead to 45-29 with 16 minutes left. It would be Lander's biggest lead of the game as the Saints began to rally.

Flagler's Brown made a layup and a 3 on consecutive possessions, pulling the Saints within 45-34 with 15 minutes left. McCray's basket as the shot clock expired gave the Lady Bearcats a 50-37 lead at the 11-minute mark. But Lander was struggling to score at this point.

Allie Mano's free throws closed the Saints within single digits for the first time of the second half at 50-42 with 9:15 left. After West scored only Lander's second basket since the 14:30 mark when she increased the Lady Bearcats lead back to 10 with 8:42 left, Flagler drew within 52-46 on Johnson's basket in the paint at the 7:33 mark.

Lindsey's 3-pointer and Mason's basket closed the Saints within a possession at 54-51 with six minutes left.

West and McCray scored Lander's first baskets on back-to-back possessions in several minutes, giving the hosts a 58-52 lead with five minutes to go. But Lindsey hit another 3 to pull Flagler within 58-55 with 4:46 left, and the Saints misfired on three game-tying 3-point attempts over the next minute plus.

The Lady Bearcats continued to struggle to extend their lead, missing a pair of free throws at the 3:30 mark.

Flagler's Williams and Lander's Watkins each hit one of two free throws, leaving the hosts with a 59-56 lead with 2:43 left. Watkins made a fast-break basket for a 61-56 Lady Bearcats lead with 2:26 to go, but Lindsey pulled Flagler back within three at the 1:31 mark. Then Lander committed a turnover.

Christina Brown made two free throws to pull the Saints within 61-60 with 1:03 to go, and after Lander's Armstrong missed a shot, Christina Brown missed a shot that would have given Flagler the lead with 32 seconds left.

Armstrong and West each hit one of two free throws at the 29 and 13-second marks, extending the Lady Bearcats lead to 63-60. Armstrong clinched the victory with two free throws with three seconds to go.