CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Presbyterian College women's basketball team used a strong second half to knock off Western Carolina in a Saturday afternoon road matchup at the Ramsey Center, 51-44.
Keyonna Allen (Forest Park, Ga.) scored 10 points and five rebounds in the second half and PC (2-2) took advantage of an early run after halftime to knock off Western Carolina (1-2).
Allen scored six of PC's final eight points before Rebecca Walker (Snellville, Ga.) and Noelle Carter (Neptune, N.J.) each grabbed crucial steals in the final minute to preserve the win. The Blue Hose broke a 23-23 halftime tie behind Allen's team-high 15 points. Aianna Kelly (Virginia Beach, Va.) posted a team-best eight rebounds and eight points while Walker chipped in 11 points, three assists and two blocks.
PC dominated the start of the second half, racing out to an 11-5 run to start the period and force Western Carolina to call its first timeout at 15:29. After the stoppage, Allen drew a blocking foul and Janie Miles swished a three-pointer from the corner to give PC its biggest lead, 37-28.
Western Carolina then ripped off a 9-2 run of its own after Miles's trey, but four points from Noelle Carter helped to slow down the Catamounts.
PC turned to Allen, who hauled in several defensive rebounds down the stretch and scored six points in less than 90 seconds to make it a 49-42 lead. The Catamounts attempted to respond, but the Blue Hose defense held on and two free throws from Cortney Storey (Fayetteville, Tenn.) iced the 51-44 victory.
Justin Taylor led all players with 20 points and 10 rebounds. The Blue Hose locked down leading scorer Sherae Bonner, holding her only six points in the second half. PC also turned the ball over only 12 times and shot 44 percent (11-for-25) in the final stanza.
PC survived an early Catamount surge to open the game and made a strong push in the first half for a 23-23 halftime score. Justin Taylor scored the game's first 10 points as the home side took a six-point lead. PC worked to chip away and a three-pointer from Walker cut PC's deficit to two. Keyonna Allen converted an old-fashioned three-point play to pull within one and Elizabeth Landers (Greenville, S.C.) made a strong move inside to give PC's lead of the game at 14-13 with 6:44 left in the half.
Western Carolina took the lead back and went up by four after the final media timeout. Walker, however, answered the call by grabbing a rebound and drawing contact while going up for a three-pointer on the other end. She hit two of her free throws before blocking a Catamount three-pointer and draining one of her own shortly after for a 21-20 PC lead. Kelly finished a tough layup inside but Makensey Campbell knocked down a trey as time expired for a 23-23 deadlock at halftime.
PC held Western Carolina to 28.6 percent (8-for-28) shooting effort in the opening half and scored 12 points in the paint to the Catamounts' four in the first half.
The Blue Hose return to action on Wednesday with a 7 p.m. contest at Xavier in Cincinnati, Ohio.
