Chowan, Mount Olive Advance to Women’s Basketball Quarterfinals

2/27/2023 7:59:03 PM

MURFREESBORO/MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – On Monday night, the final two tickets to Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium and the 2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Women’s Basketball Championship quarterfinals were punched as fifth-seeded Chowan and six-seed Mount Olive each advanced to Friday night.

The 6-10 matchup between No. 6 Mount Olive and No. 10 North Greenville came down to the final shot and the host Trojans survived a furious Crusaders rally to come away with a 72-69 victory. The home team rode a dominant first quarter, 24-13, to an 11-point, 43-32, halftime lead. The lead was cut to one, 53-52, after a 20-10 third quarter in favor of NGU had the Trojans on their heels. An Amareya Turner layup to open the fourth quarter gave North Greenville its first and only lead, 54-53, but the Trojans quickly responded with 12 straight points to push the lead back to 11, 65-54. The Crusaders then used an 11-1 run of their own to make it 66-65 with 2:57 to play. The score remained within one point until a pair of Laila Anderson free throws gave Mount Olive the three-point advantage and the last second jumper didn’t fall as the Trojans pulled out the 72-69 win. Anderson finished with a game-high 28 points while Reagan Hune added 27 for Mount Olive to go with a team-high seven rebounds and four steals. Jayda Glass paced the Crusaders with 25 points while Turner finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.

In the 5-9 matchup, the fifth-seeded host Hawks of Chowan led by as many as 34 points in a 94-73 victory over the ninth-seed, King. The Tornado scored first on a Michelle Gallegos 3-pointer, but never led again as Anaiah Patterson answered with a 3-pointer for Chowan and the Hawks scored 13 of the next 16 points for a 13-6 lead. The home team built a 19-point, 53-34, lead at the half and never looked back. King did win the fourth quarter, 28-21, but it was not enough in the loss. Destiny Robinson finished with a game-high 21 points and 13 rebounds while four other Hawks finished in double figures led by Patterson’s 15. Tori Smiley led the Tornado with 16 points while Ashley Allen scored 10 and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Chowan will face fourth-seeded Emmanuel on Friday, March 3 at 11 a.m. with Mount Olive taking on No. 3 UNC Pembroke at 1:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the 2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Women’s Basketball Championship at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium on the campus of Wofford in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Fans can watch every game of the tournament live via the Conference Carolinas Digital Network and BlueFrame at conferencecarolinasdn.com. Information regarding the championship schedule, bracket and Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium are available here.

2023 Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas Women’s Basketball Championship
First Round – Sunday, February 26
#10 North Greenville def. #7 Southern Wesleyan, 68-58, at Mount Olive (Box Score)
#9 King def. #8 Barton, 76-73, at Chowan (Box Score)

Second Round – Monday, February 27
#6 Mount Olive def. #10 North Greenville, 72-69 (Box Score)
#5 Chowan def. #9 King, 94-73 (Box Score)

Quarterfinals – Friday, March 3 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
#5 Chowan vs. #4 Emmanuel, 11 a.m.
#6 Mount Olive vs. #3 UNC Pembroke, 1:30 p.m.

Semifinals – Saturday, March 4 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of #4-#5 vs. #1 Belmont Abbey, 12:30 p.m.
Winner of #3-#6 vs. #2 Francis Marion, 2:45 p.m.

Final – Sunday, March 5 (Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium - Spartanburg, S.C.)
Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2, 1 p.m.