MOREHEAD, KY. – Morehead State used a 6-0 run late to cap off a 13-4 fourth quarter to propel the host Eagles past the Presbyterian College women's basketball team 59-54 in non-conference action at Johnson Arena on Saturday afternoon. PC was led by fifth-year senior Bryanna Brady who tallied a career-high 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field.
FINAL SCORE: Morehead State 59, Presbyterian 54
LOCATION: Johnson Arena (Morehead, Ky.)
RECORDS: Presbyterian (2-4) | Morehead State (2-4)
Coach Sharp's Thoughts
"There were some positives in our game today. We played a pretty good first half and had a much better start than our last few games. Defensively we did a good job packing in the paint and executing our game plan. We need to take a step in handling pressure and not allowing teams to speed us up. When we slow down and run our stuff we get good looks. We need to stick with the process and keep getting better."
Scoring the Game
- The two teams traded baskets in the early going before a quick 5-0 burst gave the hosts an 11-6 lead with 6:35 to play in the first quarter. The Blue Hose answered with Mara Neira and Núria Cunill leading a 5-2 response to cut it to 13-11 with 5:24 to go. Both teams cooled after a fast start with the Blue Hose able to pick it up in the final three mins with a 7-0 run to take an 18-15 lead to the second quarter.
- PC opened the second on a 7-1 run to push the lead to nine, 25-16 with 6:41 to play in the first half which forced a Morehead State timeout. Presbyterian was able to push it to 12, 30-18 with 3:51 to play in the half before Morehead State responded with a 12-0 run to even the game at 30 at the break.
- The guests came out firing in the third quarter with a 7-0 burst to push it to 37-30 with 7:38 to play in the quarter. After a quick five points from the Eagles, PC kept the pressure up with nine straight points to extend it to 46-35 with 3:30 to go in the third. Morehead State responded once again with an 11-2 run to cut it to 48-46 before two late free throws from Lalia Grant made it 50-46 after three.
- The two teams traded baskets in the opening two minutes before a 5-0 run from the Eagles made it 53-52 for the hosts midway thru the quarter. Brady connected on her eighth field goal of the afternoon to take a one-point lead with 4:17 to play. Both teams would miss their next eight shots combined before an Eagle three made it 56-54 with 34 seconds left. Morehead State scored the final three points to propel them to a 59-54 victory on Saturday afternoon.
Players of the Game
- Brady led all scorers on Saturday with a career-high 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting including a 6-of-7 line at the foul line. She also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds in the contest. Ashley Carrillo and Neira each had six rebounds with Neira adding nine points and Carrillo chipping in with four. Tilda Sjökvist along with Christina Kline each had a team-best four assists. Veronica Charles led the way for Morehead State with 18 points which included connecting on four threes as Hallie Rhodes added 14 points on 7-of-13 from the field. Rhodes recorded a team-high eight rebounds as Charles and Erola Aliberch each added seven boards. Sandra Lin distributed a game-high eight assists.
Stats of the Game
- PC went 21-of-53 (39.6%) from the floor as Morehead State shot 34.8% going 23-of-66 on Saturday. The Eagles connected on six threes compared to just two from Presbyterian. Both teams went to the foul line 13 times with the Blue Hose making 10 and the hosts connecting on seven. The Blue Hose had a 44-37 lead on the glass. Both teams shared the basketball effectively as MSU had 17 and PC had 14 helpers. PC had a 32-28 advantage in points in the paint. Morehead State had 13 steals as a part of forcing 22 Blue Hose turnovers.
Notables
- Brady recorded her first career 20+ point performance on Saturday as the fifth-year senior tallied 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting. She also connected on a career-best 6-of-7 at the foul line.
- Neira matched her season-high with six rebounds as she added nine points on the afternoon.
- Carrillo and Grant each pulled down a career-high in rebounds as Carrillo had six boards and Grant added five.
- Kline distributed a career-high four assists which was also tied for the team-high.
- PC's 31 defensive rebounds are a season-high for the Blue Hose thru six games as they posted their second most rebounds as a team at Morehead State. The only better rebounding performance occurred on opening day with 48 against Carolina University.
- The Blue Hose also matched their season-high with 10 converted free throws on just 13 attempts led by Brady's 6-of-7 performance.
Up Next
-The Blue Hose close out their four-game road swing on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. against UNC Greensboro. The game against the Spartans will be shown ESPN+ from Greensboro on Wednesday night.
