Women's Basketball Hits the Road for Series at Radford

CLINTON, S.C. – Following the holiday break, the Presbyterian College women's basketball team returns to the court this week with a Big South Conference road series at Radford.

Matchup: Presbyterian (2-2, 1-1) at Radford (0-4, 0-2)
Date: Wednesday & Thursday, December 30-31
Time: 4:00 pm / 2:00 pm
Site: Dedmon Center (Radford, Va.)
Live Video: Game 1 Game 2
Live Stats: www.GoBlueHose.com
Twitter: @bluehosewbb

Notes

Opening Tip...
After a 13-day layoff, Presbyterian returns to action with its first Big South road series of the season at Radford. The 13 days is the second-longest break between games for the Blue Hose this season, as PC went 17 days between dropping its opener at Clemson and its 30-point rout of ETSU.

Last Time Out...
Presbyterian is coming off of a split against Gardner-Webb in its first conference series. A program-record tying 32-point third quarter helped the Blue Hose take the opener against the Runnin' Bulldogs, 69-60. Tionna Carter picked up her second straight double-double (16 pts, 12 rebs) in the contest, while Trinity Johnson added 16 points of her own. In game two, both teams struggled offensively, but GWU held PC to two points in the opening quarter and built a double-digit lead. The Blue Hose got within a point on a couple of occasions in the fourth quarter, but the 'Dogs held on for the 47-44 win and series split.

A Tale of Two Quarters...
PC was at the opposite end of the spectrum in a pair of quarters against Gardner-Webb which played a large part in the team's two results against the 'Dogs. In the opener, the Blue Hose put together a 15-2 third quarter run which broke a 33-33 tie. PC netted 32 points in that third period, which tied the program record for points in a single quarter, and established a new team best for points in a quarter against a Big South foe. The next night, PC got off to a very slow start, scoring just two points in the first quarter. The two points equaled the fewest in a quarter in program history.

Scouting the Highlanders...
Radford comes into this week's series 0-4 on the season, which included getting swept at Longwood in its first conference series. The Highlanders have four players averaging 8.3 or more points per game, led by Ariel Williams' 10.0 ppg. Radford has struggled defensively, allowing a league-worst 83.5 points per game thus far. The Highlanders have had the upper hand in the series of late, winning the last eight in a row. PC's last win in the series came in Clinton on Jan. 31, 2017.

Carter Leading the Way...
For the first time in her career, Tionna Carter was named the Big South Player of the Week by the conference on Dec. 14. Carter registered her first double-double of the season, and third of her career, in a 68-38 rout at ETSU. That double-double was the first of back-to-back double-doubles for Carter, who had 16 points and 12 rebounds in the series-opening win against Gardner-Webb. In the three-point setback the next night against GWU, Carter tallied 15 points, giving her double-digit points in three straight, the longest streak of her career.

Among the Leaders...
Tionna Carter leads PC in both scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (9.0 rpg), ranking eighth and third, respectively, in the Big South in those categories. The sophomore sits fourth in field goal percentage (.525) and seventh in free throw percentage (.813). After her 10-rebound performance against GWU, Jade Compton is averaging 7.5 rebounds per game, seventh in the conference. Freshman guard Maleia Bracone sits atop the Big South with 2.3 steals per contest, while Trinity Johnson is tied for third, averaging 2.0.

Defense Fueling the Fire...
As a team, Presbyterian boasts the second-best scoring defense in the conference, allowing just 59.2 points per game, while its opponent's .348 field goal percentage is the second-lowest in the league. PC has also won the rebounding battle in its last three games, making it one of three Big South squads to boast a positive rebounding margin so far this season.

100 3's Club...
Two Blue Hose sharpshooters are within striking distance of making the 100th three-pointer of their collegiate careers. Junior guard Shamani Stafford (93) sits seven shy of the milestone, while senior forward Tess Santos (90) needs 10 triples to reach 100. Seven other Blue Hose have reached 100 career three-pointers in the program's DI era, with Karlee Taylor making a record 264 from 2010-14.

Positive Test Puts Season on Hold...
On Nov. 30, the Presbyterian women's basketball team announced a pause in team activities after a member of the program tested positive for COVID-19. This pause caused the cancellation of a pair of non-conference tilts, including a trip to Furman (Dec. 1) and the team's originally scheduled home opener against Mercer (Dec. 10). This brought PC's total number of games affected by COVID-19 to three, as the team's season-opening trip to Kennesaw State was canceled following multiple positive tests within the KSU program.

Back in Blue...
Coach Sharp brought back four starters from last year's squad, with Tionna Carter (30 GP/19 GS), Jade Compton (30 GP/28 GS), Trinity Johnson (29 GP/29 GS) and Tess Santos (30 GP/28 GS) all back in the fold. In total, the Blue Hose returned 10 letterwinners, which accounted for 77 percent of their scoring in 2019-20. Among those back are the team's top three scorers from a year ago in Johnson (15.2 ppg), Carter (8.9 ppg) and Compton (8.2 ppg).

New Kids on the Block...
Coach Sharp brought five newcomers into the fold for the 2020-21 season, four freshmen and one transfer. Center Aaliyah Austin (Satsuma, Ala.) and guards Sabrina Belquist (Los Gatos, Calif.), Maleia Bracone (Anderson, S.C.) and Kelsey Brown (Simpsonville, S.C.) make up PC's incoming freshman class, while sophomore guard Nyah Willis (San Jose, Calif.) joins the Blue Hose as a transfer from Chabot College in Hayward, Calif.

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Players Mentioned

#22 Tionna Carter: F; 6' 1"; Freshman

#32 Jade Compton: F; 5' 10"; Junior

#14 Trinity Johnson: G; 5' 6"; Sophomore

#15 Tess Santos: F; 6' 0"; Junior

#23 Shamani Stafford: G; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#11 Sabrina Belquist: G; 5' 11"; Freshman

#24 Nyah Willis: G; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#4 Kelsey Brown: G; 5' 7"; Freshman

#00 Maleia Bracone: G; 5' 10"; Freshman

#21 Aaliyah Austin: C; 6' 2"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#22 Tionna Carter
: 6' 1"; Freshman
: F

#32 Jade Compton
: 5' 10"; Junior
: F

#14 Trinity Johnson
: 5' 6"; Sophomore
: G

#15 Tess Santos
: 6' 0"; Junior
: F

#23 Shamani Stafford
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: G

#11 Sabrina Belquist
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: G

#24 Nyah Willis
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: G

#4 Kelsey Brown
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: G

#00 Maleia Bracone
: 5' 10"; Freshman
: G

#21 Aaliyah Austin
: 6' 2"; Freshman
: C