ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The Presbyterian College women's basketball team rolled to a 62-45 road win over UNC Asheville on Saturday, giving the program its first 10-win season in Division I play and its largest margin of victory over a Big South Conference team.
PC improves its record to 10-12 on the year and 4-7 in Big South play. UNC Asheville falls to 7-16 overall and 3-9 in league action.
The victory also marks the first time PC has won two consecutive road Big South contests.
Mariah Pietrowski (Elizabethton, Tenn.) led the team with 17 points and eight rebounds. Dria David (Lawrenceville, Ga.) added 14 points and Shonda Burnside (Gray Court, S.C.) scored a season-high 13.
David's first point of the game gave her 600 for her career.
Leah Wormack led the Bulldogs with 15 points.
PC shot 43.6 percent from the field (24-for-55) and outscored Asheville 40-20 in the paint and 26-11 off of turnovers.
The Blue Hose took a 15-point lead into the locker room at halftime thanks to an impressive opening run, leading 32-17 at the break.
PC charged out of the gates from the opening tip. The Blue Hose rattled off 16 unanswered points to begin the game and built a 20-point lead in the opening period. David helped fuel the run with six straight points and Pietrowski kept the pressure on, scoring eight straight points midway through the half. David also punctuated the run by swatting a Bulldog layup into the stands after helping PC take an 8-0 lead.
Up 28-8 with 7:02 left in the first half, UNC Asheville closed the period with a 9-4 run to cut the visitors' lead to 32-17 at halftime.
The Blue Hose defense locked down the Bulldogs' offense, holding the home team without a field goal for its first 11 attempts, a drought that spanned the game's first 7:15. PC limited UNC Asheville to 5-for-27 shooting in the opening half, a clip of 18.5 percent.
Pietrowski found herself three rebounds from a double-double at the half, amassing 10 points and seven rebounds in the first 20 minutes. PC went 13-for-30 in the opening half, converting from the floor at a 43.3 shooting percentage.
PC began the second half with its momentum intact, going on a 19-8 run to begin the period.
The Blue Hose kept its offense rolling, leading by as many as 26 with 14:08 remaining. Burnside and Pietrowski each scored seven in the second half to guide the Blue Hose with a win. PC limited Asheville to a 27.3 shooting percentage on a 24-for-55 tally.
PC hits the road again for its next game on Monday when the Blue Hose take on Gardner-Webb at 7 p.m. in Boiling Springs, N.C.
