SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Demetria Bland led the shorthanded Chowan Women's Basketball team to a 63-51 victory over upset-minded Converse for their fourth straight win in a Conference Carolinas contest on Friday evening on the road.
THE BASICS
FINAL | Chowan 63, Converse 51
RECORDS | Chowan 7-4 (7-2), Converse 3-8 (2-6)
LOCATION | Spartanburg, S.C. (Hannah Gym)
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Demetria Bland paced the Hawks with a season-high 17 points including 7-8 from the stripe in the final minutes of the contest.
Monique Jones notched a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Brianna Copeland added 13 points on 3-4 shooting from deep.
Converse shot 45.8% (22-48) from the floor to keep the contest close. Chowan used the 21 turnovers forced to score 25 points in a +11 margin.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter:
Brianna Copeland opened up the contest with a three-pointer as both teams struggled to find the bottom of the net in the opening minutes of the contest. The Valkyries would score five quick points on back-to-back possessions to lead 5-3.
Demetria Bland converted defense into offense with a steal and layup to even the score after a three minute drought. Monique Jones posted a putback to offset the Converse scoring. Jones added another basket to hand the lead back to the Hawks, 9-7.
Tyaysia Sharpe knocked down a layup before Demetria Bland hit a jumper to push the lead to 13-9. The Valkyries connected from deep prior to Bland and Brianna Copeland answering at the other end with a pair of three-pointers to lead 19-12.
Destiny Robinson added a layup before the end of the quarter to lead 21-12.
Second Quarter:
Converse scored the opening points of the frame from the stripe before Monique Jones scored on a driving layup.
After nearly three minutes of neither team scoring, Monique Jones posted a jumper to push the Hawks' advantage to double-figures, 25-14. Converse scored the next three buckets to close the gap to 25-20 as the Hawks faced another scoring drought.
Brianna Copeland ended the drought with a three-pointer from the left wing. The Valkyries cut away at the deficit to trail 28-22 at the halftime buzzer.
Third Quarter:
Destiny Robinson recorded a layup before Olivia Gaither knocked down a jumper following a Robinson steal to push the advantage to double-figures, 32-22, just 50 seconds into the quarter.
Converse countered with a 15-2 run to take the lead 37-34 midway through the frame. Monique Jones scored the lone basket for the Hawks during the offensive stall. Brianna Copeland ended the run with a pull up jumper before Jones scored to hand the lead back to the Hawks, 38-37.
Brianna Copeland connected from the free throw line for a pair before a four point run by the Valkyries handed the lead back to Converse, 41-40. Monique Jones added a pair at the stripe before Tyaysia Sharpe knocked down a jumper at the buzzer to give the Hawks a 44-43 lead heading into the final stanza.
Fourth Quarter:
Converse would regain the lead with the first tally two minutes into the period. After another Valkyries' bucket, Tyaysia Sharpe put the Hawks on the board with a layup. Olivia Gaither added a layup to flip the lead back to Chowan, 48-47.
Demetria Bland connected from deep to put the Hawks up 51-49 with 3:09 remaining. Destiny Robinson added a layup to give the Hawks some cushion following a Converse turnover. Bland knocked down a pair at the stripe with 1:40 remaining to offset the Valkyries' bucket, 55-51.
Monique Jones added a layup with less than a minute to go to force the Valkyries to foul. Demetria Bland picked up five points and Destiny Robinson added one from the stripe as the Hawks slated away the game at the stripe.
UP NEXT
Chowan was scheduled to take on Francis Marion on Tuesday following the postponement of the Belmont Abbey contest on Saturday. The contest against Francis Marion has been postponed. The Hawks will look to take on Mount Olive on Thursday, January 13 at home.
