Basketball Drops Conference Game to Mount Olive

Basketball Drops Conference Game to Mount Olive

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Converse (9-17, 5-13 CC) basketball team dropped a home conference game to Mount Olive (11-15, 9-9 CC) by the final of 83-55 on Saturday afternoon inside the Weisiger Center. The Trojans controlled every quarter en route to the late season Conference Carolinas win.

Abigail Lewis paced the Valkyries with 18 points while Paige Johnson and Lindsey Rogers chipped in eight points each. Rogers also contributed a team-high eight boards off the bench. Converse struggled from the floor, connecting on just 19-of-60 shots (31.7%) while UMO made as many as it missed on the evening (32-64). The Trojans held a 42-39 advantage on the glass, but Converse pulled down 17 rebounds on the offensive end.

A three-pointer by Felicity Havens staked Mount Olive to a 14-4 lead four minutes into the opening period. That lead grew to 20-8, but five straight from the Valkyries, capped off by a driving layup from Johnson closed the gap to 20-13 with 2:41 on the clock. After UMO pushed back out to a double-digit lead (25-13), Ashley Sides knocked down a free throw and Rebecca Travis added a layup to help bring the score to 25-16 after one quarter of play.

A 9-3 to start the second gave Mount Olive its biggest lead (34-19) but a deep three from Brianna Hill and layup from Lewis helped the Valkyries stay close. The remainder of the second quarter was back-and-forth as the two teams traded baskets on its respective offensive end. The Trojans went to the locker room with a 38-27 lead.

Johnson connected on a pair of free throws to open the second half, but UMO used an 18-8 run to balloon its lead to 56-37 following a Havens layup. From that point the Trojans kept the distance and led by as many as the final score of 83-55.

Havens led the Trojans with 25 points while Ni'Ya Styles chipped in 23. Hope Toliver chipped in 10 and Jada Bacchus controlled the boards, pulling down a game-high 12 rebounds.

The Valkyries will be back in action on Tuesday, February 20 as they play host to Barton College. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.