Saturday, February 18, 2006
LADY BLUE HOSE ROLL PAST BEARS 71-55
CLINTON, S.C. — Presbyterian College’s freshman Sharie Hopkins (Chesapeake, Va.) and senior Rebecca Wessinger (Laurens, S.C.) combined for 37 points to lead the Lady Blue Hose to a 71-55 victory over the visiting Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne College in South Atlantic Conference women’s basketball action Saturday afternoon at the Ross E. Templeton Center. PC improves to 19-5 overall (8-3 SAC) with the victory, while Lenoir-Rhyne falls to 10-15 overall (3-9 SAC).
Hopkins hit nine-of-12 field goals for the game to go along with eight rebounds and five assists, while Wessinger went six-of-10 from the field and added six boards.
The Lady Blue Hose took an early 19-9 lead to open the first half fueled by five points from Hopkins. The Bears trimmed the lead back in single digits at 25-16 on a three-pointer by senior Kristin Barringer (Greenville, S.C.) at the 8:27 mark. PC closed the half on a 10-4 run to take a 35-20 advantage into halftime.
Hopkins led the Lady Blue Hose with 13 first half points, while sophomore Leah Barrier (Morganton, N.C.) paced the Bears with nine points on three-of-five shooting. PC dominated the backboards, 24-13 in the first half and held the Bears to only 31.8% shooting in the first half.
In the second half, the Lady Blue Hose opened a 42-24 lead at the 17:55 mark on a three-pointer by freshman Marie Marquez (Greenville, S.C.). The Bears fought back and cut the lead to 45-32 on a jumper by freshman Asheli Helton (Icard, N.C.) with 13:19 remaining. The Bears would not get any closer as the Lady Blue Hose lead would increase to as many as 21 points on three occasions down the stretch en route to a 71-55 victory.
The Bears were led by Helton’s team-best 12 points on four-of-nine shooting from the field, while Barrier chipped in 11 points, nine of which came in the first half.
For the game, PC held a 40-23 advantage on the backboards including a 12-7 edge on the offensive glass. Lenoir-Rhyne struggled to shoot only 40.0% from the field, while the Lady Blue Hose shot 53.1% from the floor for the game.
The Lady Blue Hose return to action on Monday, February 20 with a trip to Jefferson City, Tenn. to face Carson-Newman College at 6:00 pm in make-up game from earlier in the month. The Bears return to action on Wednesday, February 22 when they host the Lady Indians of Newberry College. Tip-off is set for 6:00 pm.