#16 Tampa Ousted From SSC Tournament By Lynn

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - The University of Tampa women's basketball team was eliminated from the 2010 BlueCross BlueShield of Florida Sunshine State Conference Championships Saturday night as the team dropped a 65-58 decision to Lynn University on Saturday night. The Spartans (25-4) were aiming for a second consecutive tournament title.

It was a day of upsets at Nova Southeastern as the top two seeds fell. Second-seeded Rollins lost in the first semifinal to Barry.

The Fighting Knights (18-10) controlled play through much of the opening half, but a Tampa charge in the half's closing minutes allowed the Spartans to erase the Lynn lead and take a 30-25 lead into the locker room at the half.

Tiara Cook scored 18 of her game-high 30 points in the second half as the Spartans maintained an advantage until Lynn tied the game with 8:35 remaining in the contest. Cook's 30 points match a career high for the senior. She was an impressive 12-14 from the charity stripe.

After Lynn grabbed the lead at the 8:09 mark, Tampa could do no better than pull back into a tie with the Fighting Knights.

Joining Cook in double figures for UT was Caitlyn Mitryk who scored 13 as she connected on four 3-pointers in the contest. The conference's Defensive Player of the Year, Mitryk also added three blocks while collected three assists.

Tampa lost despite outshooting LU as the Spartans hit 41.5 percent shots compared to a 37.9 percent success rate for Lynn. The Fighting Knights, however, dominated the battle on the glass by a 42-23 margin.

The Spartans will now await their NCAA South Regional assignment as the seeding for the tournament will be announced Sunday night.