CLINTON, S.C. – The Presbyterian College women's basketball team's Big South Conference opener against visiting Gardner-Webb came down to the wire on Saturday night, but the Runnin' Bulldogs took the lead with 20 seconds left and held on to win, 54-52.
PC moves to 1-7 overall and 1-0 in the Big South Conference. The Blue Hose will take a week off of competition for final exams before resuming play on Monday, December 16 against Truett-McConnell in the program's annual Education Day game at 11:30 a.m. Gardner-Webb improves to 5-3 on the year, 1-1 in the Big South and will host Wofford on Saturday, December 14 at 4:30 p.m.
In a game that saw 10 lead change and four ties, the result came down to the last five minutes. A Sherece Smith (Clemson, S.C.) layup with 5:15 to go gave the Blue Hose a three-point lead, 52-49. Gardner-Webb answered a minute later with a Jessica Heilig layup to cut the lead to one and a Candace Brown bucket inside with 20 seconds left put Gardner-Webb ahead, 53-52.
A missed PC jumper and Runnin' Bulldog rebound led to a foul that stopped the clock with three seconds left. Brown made her first free throw and grabbed her miss on the second, sealing the win for Gardner-Webb.
Gardner-Webb's Catrina Green posted a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds while Jasmine Dale led the visitors with 16 points. Karlee Taylor (Asheville, N.C.) paced PC with 13 points while Keyonna Allen (Forest Park, Ga.) added 10 and Noelle Carter (Neptune, N.J.) grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
Despite coming up short in rebounds (43 to 24) and shooting percentage (41.5 percent to 32.1), the Blue Hose nearly pulled out the win by forcing a season-high 26 turnovers while committing only eight. PC scored 24 points—nearly half of its total—off of Gardner-Webb miscues.
The Blue Hose trailed by two points at halftime and a Heilig layup in the first minute extend ed the advantage to four points. PC chipped away on Allen free throws and a Rebecca Walker (Snellville, Ga.) trey put the home side back in front.
Gardner-Webb then scored 10 straight points to take a nine-point lead, but the Blue Hose responded in kind. Six unanswered points from Taylor and Smith pulled PC to within three, a deficit they encountered again three and a half minutes later at the 8:14 mark.
Taylor knocked down two free throws to narrow the gap to one point and another Walker three-point gave PC a two-point advantage. Gardner-Webb sent PC to the line 17 times on the night and the Blue Hose converted a season-high 14 times, shooting at a season-best 82.4 percent.
Two more Taylor foul shots gave PC four points of breathing room before Heilig finished an old-fashioned three-point play at the line to make it a one-point game. Smith's layup with 5:15 left turned the scored to 52-49, but those would prove the final points the home side would score as Gardner-Webb pulled out the win.
The Runnin' Bulldogs began the game on a 14-4 run, but PC pressured to force turnovers and regain possessions. The new chances on the offensive end led to six straight points from Allen, Walker and Kaycie Reffner (Altoona, Pa.) before an eventual Taylor three-pointer that cut the visitors' lead to two points midway through the period.
On PC's next possession, Taylor faked a three and went in to knock down a contested jumper that tied the game at 15-15. An ensuing Noelle Carter (Neptune, N.J.) bucket capped an 11-1 run and gave the Blue Hose their first lead of the game at the 8:04 mark, 17-15.
After a Gardner-Webb trey, Kaycie Reffner answered with one of her own to put PC in front. From there, the two sides swapped leads five times down the stretch as a Kiera Currie three-pointer and free-throw later gave the visitors as 29-27 lead at halftime.
