Spartanburg, SC – They say that it is good to not have too much time between a loss and the next game.  Luckily for the Converse College Women's Basketball team, this was the case Thursday night.  The Valkyries were coming off of a tough loss to King and were anxious to get back on the court.  They would welcome in Conference Carolinas foe Southern Wesleyan University to Hannah Gymnasium and were looking to get back into the win column. 

Converse controlled the opening tip, to start the first quarter, but was unable to convert a 3-pointer and a put back under the basket.  The Warriors would take advantage of those misses, and take the early lead, 4-0.  Southern Wesleyan eventually went up, 6-0, until Lindsey Hardin drained a 3-poiinter for the Valkyries, which was followed by a layup from Keyshuna Fair, trimming the Warriors' advantage to 1 point.  Fair would give Converse their first lead of the game with another layup to go ahead, 7-6.  On their next offensive possession, Eva Carballo made a fade away jumper, which increased the lead to 3.  After a media timeout, Alliee Pattillo come off the bench and drained two 3-pointers and as the quarter came to an end, the Valkyries held a 5-point lead, 15-10.

The second quarter, saw Southern Wesleyan get on the board first, hitting two shots in a row, to trim the lead to 1 point.  On their next possession, the Warriors would regain the lead when they turned a Valkyries' turnover into a 3-point basket.  However, Lindsey Hardin quickly answered with a 3 of her own, to allow Converse to go back up by 1 point, 18-17.  Sierra Davenport checked into the game and was fouled as she was in the act of shooting.  Davenport converted both free throws, to take a 3-point advantage.  After a Southern Wesleyan turnover, Tierney Porter, back from an injury, found a cutting Ashley Sides for another Valkyries layup.  However, the Warriors would go on a mini run and eventually tied the game at 23-23, forcing Coach Brunelli to call a timeout.  Keyshuna Fair grabbed a defensive rebound and on the other end of the court received a pass from Ashley Sides to hit a long 3-pointer, to go up 26-23.  As both teams went into the locker room for the half, Converse found themselves with a 3-point lead, 29-26. 

As the third quarter began, the Valkyries increased their lead to 4 and then to 6 after a jumper from Eva Carballo.  Southern Wesleyan answered with a 3 and then stole the ball on the defensive side.  On the next possession, Jordan Brown grabbed her 10^th rebound of the game, but Converse was unable to connect on a Hardin jumper.  The Warriors would take advantage of the miss and take the lead, 35-34.  That lead did not last long, as Eva Carballo hit a layup to put the Valkyries back up by 1.  Lindsey Hardin was then fouled on a 3-point shot and converted all 3 free throws to push the lead to 4 points.  In the last minute and a half of the quarter, Alliee Pattillo and Ashley Sides hit back to back 3-pointers, to give the Valkyries a 7-point lead, as the quarter ended, 47-40. 

Lindsey Hardin started the fourth quarter with a 3, to give Converse their first double digit lead of the game.  Hardin then stole the ball on defense and went the length of the court for a fast break layup.  That forced Southern Wesleyan to call a time out, but not before one of their players was called for a technical foul.  After the free throws, the Valkyries opened up a 21-point lead, after making their 9^th 3-pointer of the night.  With 3 minutes left in the game, Converse had opened up their largest lead of the game, 74-48.  The Valkyries' offense  was too much in the final few minutes, as they earned their 6^th win of the season, defeating the Warriors, 76-50.

Lindsey Hardin had one of her best games of the season, scoring 27 points and grabbing 4 rebounds.  In addition, Hardin went 6-9 from the 3-Point line and 5-8 from the free throw line.  Alliee Pattillo came off the bench and chipped in with 12 points and four 3-pointers.  Eva Carballo, once again took advantage of being in the starting line-up by adding 10 points, to go along with 4 assists and 2 steals.  In addition, Jordan Brown continued her dominance on the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds (5 Offensive and 5 Defensive).  Converse has now won 3 of their last 4 games and will look to add to that as they travel to Belmont Abbey College on Saturday, for an 8:00pm tip-off.  It is another opportunity for the Valkyries to move up in the conference rankings.