WILSON, N.C. – Behind a career scoring effort from sophomore center
Tatiana Brown and senior guard Zariyah Brown's 1,000th career point, the Converse University women's basketball team (8-15, 6-10 Conference Carolinas) cruised to an 81-52 victory over the Barton Bulldogs (11-14, 7-10 Conference Carolinas) Saturday afternoon at Wilson Gymnasium on the campus of Barton College.
The Valkyries' 29-point victory is the team's second-largest margin of victory under fourth-year head coach Samantha Davidson. It is the team's largest victory over an NCAA opponent under Davidson.
Brown led all players in scoring with 27 points, the most points by a Valkyrie all season. Senior guard Elisa Solé Sanchez and junior guard followed in scoring with 14 points each. Graduate guard Jordan Brown led Converse in rebounding with nine.
Converse and Barton went back and forth in the first quarter, with the Valkyries shooting 50.0% from the field and holding the Bulldogs to 14.3% shooting on field goals. The Bulldogs stayed in the game by aid of six trips to the charity stripe in the opening quarter. Barton never led after the first quarter.
The Valkyries dominated the game offensively and defensively in the second quarter, shooting 58.3% from the field and 50.0% from three-point range, tallying 23 points in the second frame. The Bulldogs had an abysmal quarter offensively with the Valkyries holding them to 16.7% shooting from the field and a 0-for-2 performance from beyond the arc, netting just 6 points heading into halftime. Converse led 41-20 at the break.
The Bulldogs had their only quarter shooting over 20% from the field in the third quarter and outpaced Converse by eight points in the quarter. The Valkyries still shot a respectable 38.9% from the field in the quarter. Both teams nailed one three pointer. The Converse lead shrank slightly to 13 points heading into the fourth quarter.
Barton continued their uninspired shooting performance in the fourth quarter, shooting 15.4% from the field while Converse shot 47.1% from the field, including drilling four three-pointers, over the final 10 minutes of the game. The Valkyries led by as many as 32 points with 39 seconds remaining, but Barton nailed their lone three-pointer of the quarter with 35 seconds remaining, the final basket of the game. Converse walked out of Wilson Gymnasium with a nearly-30-point victory over the Bulldogs, 81-52.
The Valkyries are back on the court tomorrow, Sunday, Feb. 16 as their road trip continues against the Chowan Hawks. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 P.M.
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