BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The Presbyterian College women's basketball team held a slim lead at halftime in its Big South Conference game at Campbell on Tuesday night, but a big second-half run from the Camels handed the Blue Hose a 58-45 loss.
PC moves to 6-6 on the year and 1-2 in the Big South. The Blue Hose return home to host UNC Asheville on Saturday at 2 p.m. Campbell improves to 7-5 overall, 2-1 in League play and plays at Longwood on Saturday at 2 p.m.
The Blue Hose led 20-18 at halftime before Campbell went on a 19-3 run to start the second half. PC battled to narrow the gap but could not dig from under the deficit as PC suffered its first loss when leading at halftime, snapping a 5-0 record in that category.
Janie Miles (Clemson, S.C.) led the Blue Hose in scoring for the second straight game with 14 points, 10 of which came in the second half. Keyonna Allen (Forest Park, Ga.) added 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Campbell's Summer Leverette led all players with 18 points.
A first half of runs led to the Blue Hose holding a 20-18 edge at the break. PC broke a 10-10 tie with a 10-4 run heading into the last media timeout with 4:09 left. The Blue Hose went cold down the stretch but had enough to keep a slim edge at halftime thanks in part to shutting out the Camels for nearly six minutes.
The Camels turned to RaeChaun Edwards and Summer Leverette for the half's final four points for a 20-18 tally. Campbell ran into trouble with five minutes left in the period as senior star Kiera Gaines picked up her third foul of the evening. Aianna Kelly (Newport News, Va.) helped spur PC's run with some of her eight first-half points and Keyonna Allen put the ball in PC hands with six first-half rebounds. Noelle Carter (Neptune, N.J.) made several hustle plays late in the half, including blocking a shot and diving to keep a ball inbounds for a steal.
PC held Campbell to 29.6 percent shooting in the opening stanza with no good shots from downtown on five attempts.
The second half told a different story. Campbell roared to start the period, scoring eight points in the first three minutes. Kelly also hit foul trouble, earning her third and fourth during the Camels' quick strike.
The Camels took advantage of long-range shots to build their lead, going 4-for-7 from distance in the second half. Allie Wagner (Greenville, S.C.) drained two free throws to stop a run of 13 unanswered points before Miles scored eight of PC's points in a row to pull PC back within 15 with 6:44 to go in the game.
PC would claw a bit closer as Allen began to heat up, but the Camels' lead proved too much. Campbell shot 54.2 percent in the final 20 minutes en route to the win.
One bright spot came in the paint as the Blue Hose set a new season-high with five blocks on the evening. Allen and Walker tallied two each with Carter adding another.
