CLINTON, S.C. – The Presbyterian College Blue Hose women's basketball team (17-13, BSC: 8-7) took down the USC Upstate Spartans (15-14, BSC: 10-6) 47-43 after a close final minute of play.
 
COACH SHARP'S THOUGHTS
"I thought we had a really great start to the game, we executed offensively in the fourth quarter to pick up a lead that we really needed. It was a slug fest, that's kind of how Upstate makes people play. We held them to 43 points, and held them to a single digit quarter."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter – The Blue Hose started off strong, scoring eight of the first 10 points of the night. Upstate was able to hit a three-pointer, but Presbyterian went on to push their lead to a score of 17-8 behind a three-point bucket from Mara Neira. The Spartans scored two more points, but PC ended the first quarter in front 17-10.
 
Second Quarter – After a scoreless minute and a half, Upstate got on the board first with a layup before Neira answered with back to back three-point splashes. Some back and forth made the score 27-21 still in Presby's favor. USC Upstate scored two more points before the end of the first half, but the Blue Hose held a 27-23 lead.
 
Third Quarter – Both teams took a basket to kick off the third quarter before Upstate made a three-point jumper to cut their deficit down to just one point with a score of 29-28. Tilda Sjokvist answered with a three-pointer of her own before a pair of foul shots from the other side. Some back and forth brought the score to 34-32 with PC still fighting to hold the lead. Some solid defense from both sides led to over four scoreless minutes of play. The Spartans hit a three-point shot with 30 seconds left on the clock to take their first lead of the night, ending the half 35-34.
 
Fourth Quarter – The Blue Hose quickly regained the lead with a three-point shot from Sjokvist followed by a layup from Christina Kline. Upstate answered with four points of their own, but Presbyterian held a 41-39 lead with 4:52 left on the clock. Dennaye Hinds came up big with an offensive rebound and a put back to extend Presby's lead to four-points. Four more points from the opponents tie up the game at 43 points apiece with 2:36 left to play. Bryanna Brady made a contested layup to give the Blue and Garnet a two-point lead with 1:24 left in the fourth quarter. With PC's lead remaining at 45-43, Upstate called a timeout with 9.7 seconds left with possession of the ball on their end of the court. A charge called on the Spartans gave PC possession and forced Upstate to foul. Brady sank two crucial free throws to put the Blue Hose ahead 47-43 and secure the win.
 
NOTABLES
- Tilda Sjokvist with 14 points, three steals, and three assists.
- Mara Neira recorded 11 points, four rebounds, three steals, and three assists.
- Bryanna Brady put up 12 points, six rebounds, and an assist.
- After being in a four-way tie for third place, the Blue Hose bump up in the rankings with an 8-7 conference record.
 
UP NEXT
The Blue Hose conclude their regular season on Saturday, March 2 with a game on the road against Charleston Southern at 2:00 p.m.