FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (Jan. 17, 2009) - For the second time this week, Nova Southeastern University's women's basketball team downed a nationally-ranked opponent as the Sharks topped No. 8 Rollins 53-45 in Sunshine State Conference action at the University Center on Saturday afternoon. The Sharks, who topped No. 13 Barry on Wednesday, improve to 6-9 on the season and 2-3 in the SSC. Meanwhile, it was Rollins' first lost of the season and the Tars fall to 14-1 overall and 5-1 in conference play.

With NSU up 8-5 at the 12:24 mark, Rollins' Jessica Pressley drew the foul as she was attempting a three-pointer. Pressley hit all three of her foul shots to tie the game, but a LaShawnna Edwards (Jr., Miami, Fla.) jumper a minute later sparked a 10-0 run for the Sharks.

NSU pushed their advantage to 12 on a jumper from Erin Zampell (Fr., Naples, Fla.) with 5:39 remaining to make it 22-10. However, in the final 4:39 of the half, Rollins used a 9-4 run to cut the Sharks' lead in down to six as NSU carried a 26-20 advantage into halftime.

Early in the second half, NSU had to fend off Rollins' offense. With the Sharks up by five, back-to-back treys from Kourtnie Berry allowed the Tars to take a 36-35 lead with 13:13 to go. NSU ultimately gained a crucial two-point advantage behind an Edwards free throw and a Stephanie Sarosi (Jr., Mims, Fla.) layup to go up 38-36 at the 9:37 mark. Ines Teuma evened the game up for Rollins with a layup with 8:03 remaining.

Control of the game flip-flopped between the two teams until an Edwards bucket at 6:09 sparked a critical 11-2 run for the Sharks. During the run, Edwards was responsible for seven of NSU's points, helping the Sharks to take a 52-44 lead with just over a minute left in the game.

NSU was 32.8 percent (20-for-61) from the floor, while Rollins shot 24.1 percent (14-for-58). Rollins held the edge in rebounds (47-44), but the Sharks totaled more blocks (10-6) and steals (9-3).

Sarosi led the game with a 16-point, 17-rebound performance. She also had four of the Sharks' blocks. Edwards chipped in with 14 points and had a game-high three steals.

Pressley recorded a team-high 11 points, while Teuma had a team-best nine boards for the Tars.

The Sharks are on the road for their next two games. NSU travels to Florida Tech on Wednesday with game time set for 5:30 p.m.