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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Not much has changed in the 12 years
since Vanderbilt last played Austin Peay. Junior forward Jenni Benningfield scored a season-high 20 points
and No. 9 Vanderbilt led by as many as 35 points en route to an
84-50 victory over Austin Peay on Sunday. Chantelle Anderson added 15 points, including 9-of-10 from the
free throw line, for Vanderbilt (6-1), and Ashley Earley added 15
points in a reserve role. The teams played for the first time since Dec. 31, 1990. In that
game, the Commodores beat Austin Peay 111-60 in Nashville. "It was nice to see us not play in spurts, "but to play
consistently the whole game,'' first-year Vanderbilt coach Melanie
Balcomb said. "I don't think there were more than two spurts where
they scored more than two baskets in a row, so they never really
got on a run. We kept the pressure on them for 40 minutes.'' Austin Peay (4-2), which won the University of Missouri
tournament last weekend, made one of 11 shots from the field in the
first six minutes as Vanderbilt raced to an 11-2 lead. Austin Peay answered with five straight points, including its
only free throw of the first half, but the Commodores continued to
take advantage of poor shooting by the Lady Govs. The Commodores hit two 3-pointers in the final minute to take a
46-20 halftime lead. Austin Peay shot 30 percent from the field in the first half and
did not do much better in the second despite grabbing 24 offensive
rebounds. Ashley McElhiney scored seven of her 14 points as Vanderbilt
extended its lead to 34 points early in the second half. Brooke Armistead led Austin Peay with 14 points. Paige Smith
shot 1-for-8 from the field for two points, well below her 11.8
average. "We keyed on their two best shooters [Smith and Armistead
] and really worked trying not to get them open looks,'' Balcomb said.
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