NORFOLK, Va. - Center Nadege Dareus (Miami, Fla.) scored a team-high 11 points, including the tie-breaking layup with seven seconds left, to lift Norfolk State to a 59-57 non-conference win over Virginia Union on Monday night at Echols Hall.

VUU (0-5) led 57-55 after a free throw by Ciara Alston with 2:44 left in the half. NSU (2-8) tied the game on a short jumper by Dareus with 1:34 left. The teams traded possessions over the next minute, and the Spartans regained possession after an offensive foul on Alston with 16 seconds left.

After a timeout, NSU guard Toia Johnson (Hampton, Va.) avoided a trapping defense and found Dareus wide open under the basket for the winning basket. Alston missed an off-balanced 3-pointer at the buzzer.

The Spartans started the game quickly. Johnson, Tiffany Gadsden (Columbia, S.C.) and Ashley Green (Chesapeake, Va.) each hit a 3-pointer in the first seven minutes of the game to stake the Spartans to a 16-6 lead.

But after hitting six of their first 14 field goal attempts, NSU hit just five of its final 16 shots in the first half. VUU guard Denae Kennedy scored all eight of her points in the first half to help the Lady Panthers rally to within four, 29-25, heading into halftime.

But the Lady Panthers opened the second half on a 10-2 run to take a 35-31 lead after a jumper by Racquel Curtis. VUU would stretch its lead to as many as seven points before NSU rallied. The Spartans held the Lady Panthers to just two field goals in the final eight minutes, and worked the ball inside to Dareus and Areya Walker (Portsmouth, Va.), who had eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds.

Johnson added 10 points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals for the Spartans. Green had a career-high eight assists.

Shawanda Geter had 17 points and eight rebounds to pace VUU. Katchona Johnson added 13 points.