Box Score Box Score
A late comeback by the High Point University women's basketball team fell just short as the Panthers lost, 74-66, to Big South leader Gardner-Webb Saturday afternoon in the Millis Center. Sophomore
Shamia Brown and junior
Jurica Hargraves each scored 11 points for the Panthers in the loss.
"The first six minutes of the second half was pretty much the difference in the game today," head coach Tooey Loy said. "Gardner-Webb really played a good game and we let down for six minutes and they put us away. The effort was there; we were diving for loose balls and did a good job on the boards. There were some positives to take out of this game and this is a step towards getting back to where we want to be."
After trailing by 23 with seven minutes remaining, High Point outscored GWU 26-12 the rest of the way. HPU forced six turnovers and shot 9-15 from the floor and 7-10 from the line in the final eight minutes.
"I am really proud of our kids and the way they kept battling and never quit," Loy said. "We learned some things late in the game that hopefully we can use the next time we see them."
Both teams shot the ball well in the opening minutes and four minutes into the game the score was tied, 11-11. The two teams combined to shoot 9-15 from the floor in the first few minutes. Senior Ashlee' Samuels scored six of the Panthers 11 points, going 3-3 from the floor.
The back and forth nature of the game continued with nine ties and four lead changes in the first nine minutes of the contest. Neither team was able to build a lead larger than three points and with 11 minutes left in the half the score remained tied 20-20.
Back-to-back three-point plays by the Running Bulldogs' Monique Hudson broke the tie and put GWU up 26-20 with nine minutes left. Hudson sparked a 17-6 run over the next seven minutes for the Bulldogs, giving them an 11-point lead, 37-26, with just under two minutes left in the half.
Junior
Amy Dodd scored five-straight points with a fast-break lay-up and a three from the right elbow to cut the Gardner-Webb lead to just six, 37-31, with only six seconds remaining in the half, but GWU's Dominique Hudson hit a running three at the buzzer to give Garnder-Webb a 40-31 lead at the break.
Brown scored seven points in the opening half to lead the Panthers and Samuels chipped in with six points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Dominique Hudson led all scorers with 12 points at the break for the Running Bulldogs.
Gardner-Webb built on Hudson's three at the end of the first half, outscoring HPU, 21-8 in the first 10 minutes of the second period to open a 23-point lead, 61-38, with a little under 10 minutes left in the contest. A lay-up by Hargraves was the Panthers only field goal as HPU shot just 1-14 during the run.
Down 23, 63-40, with seven minutes left in the game, HPU went on a 5-0 run as Hargraves hit a three and Samuels hit a hook shot in the paint to cut the GWU advantage to 63-45. The baskets sparked a 20-6 run by the Panthers to pull within nine, 69-60, with just over one minute left in the game.
HPU scored six points in the final minute of play, including four by junior
LaTeisha Dean, but Gardner-Webb hit five free throws and the Panthers' comeback ran out of time as the game ended with GWU on top, 74-66.
Samuels finished with 10 points and a game-high 14 rebounds to pick up her team-leading fourth double-double of the season.
Dominique Hudson and junior Courtney Epps each scored 19 points to lead all scorers for Gardner-Webb. The Running Bulldogs return to action on Monday when they travel to Asheville, N.C. to play UNC Asheville at 7 p.m.
The Panthers fall to 13-11 overall and 6-5 in the Big South with the loss while Gardner-Webb improves to 21-3 overall and 10-1 in the conference.
High Point next welcomes Radford to the Millis Center on Monday, Feb. 15, in the second of four straight home games for HPU. In the two teams' first meeting, High Point beat RU, 78-67, in Radford, Va. Tip-off against the Highlanders is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on SportSouth.
