CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Audrey Meyers made a jumper with two seconds left to propel Western Carolina past the Presbyterian College women's basketball team on Tuesday afternoon by the score of 52-51 at the Ramsey Center. Presbyterian was led by fifth-year senior Jade Compton who totaled 22 points on 7-11 shooting.
FINAL SCORE: Western Carolina 52, Presbyterian 51
LOCATION: Ramsey Center (Cullowhee, N.C.)
RECORDS: Presbyterian (0-3) | Western Carolina (2-1)
Coach Sharp's Thoughts
"There are a lot of positives that we can take from our game today. First thing is we responded with a lot better energy and effort from our last game. We did a lot of things right in our late game execution. There are some things to be learned and cleaned up. I was proud of how aggressive Jade Compton came out, we need that from her and was good to see. We are looking forward to our home opener this weekend.."
Scoring the Game
- Western Carolina opened the game with a quick 4-0 spurt before back-to-back three-pointers by Compton gave PC a 6-4 edge. The Catamounts pushed back ahead by two at 8-6 at the first media timeout. Compton continued her strong quarter with another three and a pair of free throws along with a Nyah Willis layup as PC grabbed a 13-10 lead with three minutes to play. Willis added another bucket that would lead it to a 15-14 PC lead after the opening frame.
- The Blue Hose kept the pressure on the Catamounts with a 10-2 run over the first three minutes to push the lead to nine, 25-16. WCU cut the lead to two, 25-23 with 2:55 to play before a 5-2 burst closed the quarter for PC leading 30-25.
- After a quick layup from the Catamounts to cut it to three, Bracone and Compton scored six straight points to extend the lead back to nine, 36-27 with 6:14 to play in the third quarter. WCU whittled the lead to two, 38-36 with 1:51 to play off of a 9-2 run. The Blue Hose closed on a quick burst to take a 42-38 lead to the final stanza.
- WCU got out to a quick start in the fourth scoring eight of the first ten points to take a 46-44 edge with 2:37 to play in regulation. Tionna Carter scored four unanswered over the next minute to push PC back in front 48-46 with 1:10 to play in the quarter. WCU quickly tied it back up and following a one out of two at the line for Presbyterian, the hosts regained the lead with a floating jumper with 22 seconds left to lead 50-49. Compton drew a foul with 18 seconds to play and buried both free throws before the Catamounts went down and converted on a jumper with two seconds left to take the victory.
Players of the Game
- Jade Compton led all scorers with 22 points as she connected on 7-11 field goals while adding three from beyond the arc. Nyah Willis added a season-high with 12 points while adding five rebounds. Tionna Carter chipped in 11 points with a team-high six rebounds. Maleia Bracone added a team-high four assists. Western Carolina was paced by Vanessa Oduah with 16 points, while Endia Holliday added 13 points off the bench like Oduah. Nadia Marshall led the Catamounts with six rebounds as Madison Pack had a team-best four helpers.
Stats of the Game
- PC posted a 41.5% shooting performance (17-of-41) while holding the Catamounts to 36.4% (20-of-55). Presbyterian connected on four threes and held WCU to 0-of-14 from beyond the arc. Both teams were strong on Tuesday from the charity stripe with the Blue Hose making 13-of-15 and the Catamounts making 12-of-13 from the line. WCU held a 37-22 edge on the glass including a 17-6 edge in offensive boards. Led by their two leading scorers, the Catamounts outscored the Blue Hose bench 31-2.
Notables
- Compton totaled her sixth career 20+ point performance with 22 points on Tuesday.
- Sophomore Maleia Bracone tied her career-high with four assists a mark she set against Charleston Southern in January of 2021.
- Tuesday was a season-high for the Blue Hose from the free-throw line making 13-of-15. It's the second time PC has made at least 75% at the line through the first three games.
- Freshman guard Jo Raflo made her first career start on Tuesday for the Blue Hose.
Up Next
- The Blue Hose opens their home slate on Saturday as PC welcomes St. Thomas to the Templeton Center with a tip set for 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
