SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Converse basketball team was unable to hold a double-digit advantage versus Emmanuel College on Saturday afternoon, dropping a tough 76-72 game to the Lions. Converse led by as many as 13 in the second half, but could not hang on to pull the upset. 

GAME INFORMATION

Score: Emmanuel 76, Converse 72

Records: Emmanuel (18-9, 15-6 CC), Converse (4-26, 3-18 CC)

Location: Hannah Gymnasium, Converse College, Spartanburg, S.C. 

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

• Ellen Nardella posted a team-high 16 points, all of which came in the first half of play.
• Shakori Jennings-Shuler matched her career-high with 14 points on 7-of-12 from the floor.
• Dominique Hill posted 13 points after knocking down three of four shots from behind the arc.
• Bhrianna Jackson led the Valkyries with seven assists while Sierra Davenport grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
• Converse shot a season-high 50% (12-24) from the three-point line, but was able to get to the charity stripe on just three occasions.
• The Valkyries bench outscored Emmanuel by a wide margin of 35-7. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter

Alexis McMillian started the scoring with a layup on the Vals first possession. However, Emmanuel came back with five in a row to earn its first lead, 5-2. Hill took a nice pass from Jackson and calmly drained a three at the top of the key to knot the score at 5-5 with 8:12 left in the opening quarter. 

From that point, the game was evenly contested as neither team could gain more than a three-point lead. Lindsey Hardin knocked down a deep three at the 1:54 mark to give Converse the 20-17 lead, but Mari Jonassen answered back for Emmanuel with a three of her own, sending the game into the second knotted at 20-all. 

Second Quarter

Converse began to assert itself at the start of the second quarter, jumping out to a 30-24 advantage following a 10-4 run. Emmanuel tried to chip away at the lead but Converse had an answer on every run by the Lions. An old-fashioned three-point play by Nardella put the Valkyries up 33-26 with 4:38 left on the clock. 

Emmanuel's Lexie Sengkhammee came back with a triple to keep the Lions close. However, Davenport connected on a layup followed by a three-ball by Hardin, giving Converse the 38-29 advantage at the half. 

Third Quarter

Back-to-back baskets for the Valkryies to open the second half gave Converse its biggest lead of the game, 42-29. The Lions found their offensive rhythm, reeling off a crucial 16-4 run over the next five minutes to cut the Valkyries lead down to a single point (46-45). 

Hardin was able to hit a running layup to put a brief stop to the run, but Emmanuel scored five in a row to take a 50-48 advantage, its first of the second half. That lead ballooned to 55-48 before an Ashley Sides three made the score 55-51 in favor of the visitors. After a pair of free throws pushed the lead to six (57-51) for Emmanuel, Converse got a jumper from Jackson followed by another three from Sides to send the game into the fourth with the Vals trailing 57-56. 

Fourth Quarter

Breana Locke connected on a hoop-and-harm to begin the fourth, but Sides answered back with three points in the more conventional way. With the score at 60-59 for Emmanuel, the Lions captured 14 of the next 16 points, earning a double-digit lead (74-61) with 3:52 left in regulation. 

Converse went on a mini 6-0 run, pulling to within 74-67, but a pair of free throws by Brooke Whitaker stopped the scoring advantage. Down 76-67 with 20 ticks left on the clock, Hill connected on a three followed by a layup from Jennings-Shuler, but it was not enough as time ran out on the Valkyries comeback bid. 

UP NEXT

Converse will close out the regular season on Tuesday, February 25, playing host to Barton inside the Weisiger Center at 6 p.m.