Saturday,
January 31, 2004
PC HOLDS OFF
NEWBERRY 69-56 IN SAC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ACTION
CLINTON,
S.C. – Presbyterian College’s senior guard Bonnie
Werner (Kennesaw, Ga.) led three Blue Hose in double
figures with 13 points and added four assists en route to an
69-56 win over Newberry College in South Atlantic Conference
women’s basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Ross E.
Templeton Center.
In the
first half, both teams took turns with the lead as it changed
hands six times and there were five ties before intermission.
Newberry used aggressive defense throughout the half and took
advantage of a 14-6 advantage in points in the paint to keep
the game close. PC’s senior guard Billie
Haskins (Greensboro, Ga.) hit a pair of free throws to
give the Blue Hose a 24-23 at intermission. Both teams
struggled from the field in the first half with PC shooting
22.2% and Newberry shooting 30.3%.
The second
half Presbyterian used a 10-0 run fueled by seven points from
junior guard Lauren
Dobson (Greenville, SC) to take a 38-29 advantage with
13:00 left in the game. Newberry responded with a 8-2 run,
keyed by four points from junior guard Laura Banda (Holcomb,
KS) to cut the lead to four points at 52-48 with 4:23
remaining.
The Blue
Hose iced the game down the stretch by hitting 12-of-12 at the
charity stripe in the final three minutes to take the 69-56
victory.
Joining
Werner for scoring honors was Haskins with 12 points off the
bench while Dobson chipped in 10 points for PC. Newberry was
led by Banda’s game-high 17 points while freshman forward Tonya
Deese (Prosperity, SC) added 12 points and eight rebounds.
Sophomore forward Lauren Wrightson (Damascus, MD).
Presbyterian
improves to 7-12 overall 3-4 in the SAC while Newberry falls
to 3-16 overall and 0-7 in league play.
Following today’s game, the Presbyterian College women’s basketball program held a special ceremony as they honored the career achievements of former Blue Hose All-American Rachel Sloan Bullard (1998-00) with the retirement of her jersey. Bullard led the program to a four-year mark of 97-24, three South Atlantic Conference regular season and Tournament titles, as well as three trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament. Bullard is the program’s all-time leading scorer (1,889) and rebounder (1,034), a three-time All-American, and the program’s first Kodak All-American. She is one of only one of only two student-athletes in SAC history to earn SAC Female-Athlete of the Year honors and one of only four in league history to compile 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds in their career.