BOX SCORE (pdf)
CONWAY, S.C. – Campbell wrapped 17-2 run around half-time and went on to defeat Gardner-Webb 63-46 Thursday in the quarterfinal round of the VisitMyrtleBeach.com Big South Championship at the HTC Center.
RaeChaun Edwards led a balanced attack with 15 points, while Roslyn Presley added 12 for Campbell, which made 8 of its first 9 shots in the second period, including 4-4 threes. Kiera Gaines and Summer Leverette scored 9 each for Campbell, which shot 56 percent after intermission and led by as many as 24.
The fourth-seeded Lady Camels (19-11) advances to the semifinals for the second straight year where Campbell will meet top seed High Point (21-9) Saturday at 6:00 p.m.
Candace Brown (11) was the lone player in double digits for Gardner-Webb, which shot just 27 percent (16-59) for the game.
Even with Big South defensive player of the year Kiera Gaines on the bench with 3 fouls, Campbell closed the first half on a 10-2 run and led 27-20 at the break. D Janelle Brown opened the final period with a trey, Preslyn spun in the lane for a left-handed layup and Brown's floater from the right baseline extended the margin to 34-20 with 17:55 to play.
Catrina Green answered with 7-straight points to pull the Bulldogs within 36-27 with 15:51 to go, but Amanda Coffer connected on a three with 14:12 remaining and Gardner-Webb never trimmed the gap to single figures again.
"We're excited to be moving on to the next round," said Campbell head coach Wanda Watkins. "Gardner-Webb is very good and extremely athletic. I thought our kids worked hard and played very unselfishly. "
In a matchup of two teams that split a pair of regular season meetings decided by a total of five points, neither led by more than four until Campbell's burst that started with Leverette's offensive board and bucket with 4:40 to play in the first half.
However, the Camels knocked down 4 threes in as many attempts over the first 7:58 of the second period, while Gardner-Webb made only 4-of-18 shots before the second media timeout. The Bulldogs never drew closer than 16 over the last 10 minutes of the game.
On the day, Campbell shot 44.8 percent (26-58) from the floor, made 8-15 threes (.533) and hit all 3 of its free throws. Gardner-Webb shot only 22.9 percent (8-35) in the second half, made 2-of-12 triples overall and 12-of-19 from the stripe (.632).
Campbell finished with a 41-35 edge on the glass, led by Ashley James, who corralled nine rebounds, and Presley, who grabbed 7.
"Hopefully, we can build on the momentum we started today," said Watkins. "We know the only way we can get to the post-season this year is to play through this tournament. With five seniors, we have an awful lot to play for."
High Point advanced to Saturday's semis on the strength of a 79-69 victory over eighth-seeded UNC Asheville in Thursday's opening quarterfinal game. Second-seeded Liberty meets seventh seed Presbyterian in the 6 p.m. quarter, followed by third seed Winthrop against host and sixth seed Coastal Carolina.
