TIGERVILLE, S.C.  – With a strong defensive first quarter and a solid offensive showing in the second half of action, the Converse University women's basketball team (9-14, 5-8 Conference Carolinas) defeated the North Greenville Crusaders (13-7, 7-6 Conference Carolinas) by a final score of 57-51 Saturday afternoon on the road.

Redshirt senior center Sydney Wilson led the Valkyries in scoring with 15 points. She also shared the team lead in rebounds with graduate guard Jordan Brown. Both Valkyries recorded eight rebounds in the win, the most by a player on either team. Junior guard Sierra Jones was Converse's second leading scorer with 11 points.

The Valkyries got off to a show start offensively in the first quarter, netting their first points just over three minutes into the quarter with a free throw by junior guard Elisa Solé Sanchez. Following that free throw, the Valkyries defense stepped up and held the Crusaders without a point for almost four minutes. Converse grew the lead to six points before North Greenville scored their final points of the first quarter. With only a few seconds left to play in the opening quarter, junior guard Reagan Cameron sank a three-point shot, expanding the lead to seven points, 13-6, heading into the second quarter.

The teams traded baskets over the first three-and-a-half minutes of the second quarter, with North Greenville holding a one-point advantage over that period. Solé Sanchez sank a jump shot with 6:15 remaining in the first half. Following that basket neither team netted another point for two-and-a-half minutes. North Greenville cut the lead to four points with two free throws with just under four to play in the first half but a jump shot from Brown regrew the lead. The Crusaders continued to push for the Valkyries' lead, cutting it to as few as a single point with 43 seconds remaining in the second quarter. But with 23 seconds to play in opening half, Brown sank a jumper and the Valkyries forced a miss from the Crusaders, allowing Converse to take a 23-20 lead into the locker room.

Converse narrowly outscored the Crusaders in both of the final two quarters. The Valkyries' largest lead of the second half was 12 points which they managed twice: once with just over five minutes to play in the third quarter when Jones sank a three pointer assisted by fellow junior guard Zariyah Washington and once when Wilson sank a mid-range jump shot with 7:43 remaining in the game, also assisted by Washington. North Greenville chipped away at the lead, but the deficit was insurmountable and Converse secured the victory 57-51.

The Valkyries continue their three-game road trip on Tuesday, Feb. 13 as they take on the King Tornado at 5:30 P.M. in Bristol, Tennessee.

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