CLEMSON,
S.C. - Presbyterian College women's basketball shot well in the opening half to
trail by two at the half to Clemson but a tough start to the second half doomed
PC to a 61-49 defeat on Sunday afternoon.
Karlee Taylor (Asheville, N.C.) led PC in scoring with 12 points.
"I was very proud of our effort in the first half. We defended really well," said head coach Ronny
Fisher. "Clemson really got some good
looks in the second half and we hit a major lull. They are a good team and they made the shots."
The loss drops PC to 2-5 on the year while the Tigers improve to 6-2 on
the season.
The Blue Hose got hot from downtown in the first half with a 5-for-8
(.625) showing from the outside. Taylor
and Chelsea Parker (Asheville, N.C.) each drained a pair of baskets in succession
to finish the first half with six points.
Parker would add one more in the second half to finish the day with
seven points.
Mariah Pietrowski had five of her seven first half points from the charity
stripe to reel Clemson back from a seven point lead. Her points cut Clemson's advantage to 28-26
at the halftime break.
Out of the intermission, Clemson rattled off a 21-3 run in the first 9:27
of the period to take a 48-29 lead until a free throw from Sherece Smith
(Clemson, S.C.) at 10:22 effectively snapped the streak. PC made just one field goal in the first 13
minutes of the second half. The Blue
Hose post a 6-for-24 second half shooting
Mariah Pietrowski (Elizabethton, Tenn.) scored a balanced eight points
with eight rebounds. Her total included
six points from the free throw line.
Shonda Burnside (Gray Court, S.C.) dropped in five points and three
boards. PC's late points went to Megan
Schaaf (Ellicott City, Md.) as the freshman scored four points in the final
minute of the game.
PC shot .471 in the first half from the field but cooled to shoot .250 in
the second period. Alternatively, Clemson
was a cool .241 from the field in the opening half but shot .480 in the second
period.
For the fifth
time this season, PC out-rebounded its opponent with 38 boards to Clemson's
35.
PC continues
its tour of the ACC on December 16 with a road tilt against NC State inside
historic Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh.
The Blue Hose will then head north for a game against Ohio University in
Athens on December 19.
Fans can keep
up with Blue Hose women's basketball and the rest of PC's 16 intercollegiate
sports teams at www.Twitter.com/BlueHoseSports. There, fans will find exclusive updates you
can't find anywhere else. If video is
your quest, check out the BlueTube on www.GoBlueHose.com or www.youtube.com/BlueHoseAthletics.
