CONWAY, S.C.-Gardner-Webb shot 38.2% from the field in the first half and took a 29-22 lead into halftime, but High Point shot 44.4 % in the second half, and Stacia Robertson scored 15 of her 24 points after halftime, to propel the Panthers to the Big South Tournament Championship game with a 56-53 lead on Saturday evening.
Gardner-Webb ends the season with a 15-17 overall record, while High Point improves to 20-11 and advances to tomorrow's championship game, where it will face the No. 1 seed and Big South regular-season champion Liberty at 5:00 p.m.
Mayhana Dunovant led the offensive attack for the Runnin' Bulldogs with 15 points and tied a season-high with four steals, but Gardner-Webb struggled offensively down the stretch hitting just 1 of its last 15 attempts.
Despite struggling offensively from the field, Jessica Heilig and Olivia Parker each pulled down double-digit rebounds, securing 11 and 10 boards respectively, but after getting outrebounded by 13 in the first half, High Point made great adjustments at halftime and won the rebounding battle after halftime by a 25-17 margin.
Kiera Currie gave the Dogs a 53-52 lead with 1:49 left in regulation, but Kaylah Keys made a great play on defense to pickpocket the ball from Dunovant, and would head to the line for two after getting fouled by Gardner-Webb.
Keys would make both free-throws to take a 54-53 lead, and after an ensuing timeout by Gardner-Webb, Brown drove the lane, but had her shot blocked by Robertson and High Point secured the rebound. Dunovant fouled Puckett on the inbounds pass, but the redshirt senior made both free-throws and a game-tying three pointer by Gardner-Webb would fall just short, as High Point advanced to Sunday's championship with a nail-biting 56-53 victory.
Midway through the first half, Dunovant connected on a layup, and Currie hit a three-point to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a 16-10 advantage.
Robertson and Dunovant traded baskets, and it was Robertson adding two points in the scoring column with a layup to cut the defecit to four at the under 8 media timeout.
Back-to-back baskets by Parker gave the Dogs their largest lead of the first half 22-14, as the Runnin' Bulldogs held the lead for the remainder of the first half and took a 29-22 advantage into halftime.
Gardner-Webb continued to hold the lead into the second half and matched its largest lead of the game 42-34, but High Point used a 10-2 run to cut the GWU lead to one with just over 10 minutes left in the game.
After Robertson tied the game at 48, Keys followed up with a layup of her own, and the Panthers took their first lead of the game since the 11:58 mark of the first half.
Dunovant gave the lead back to GWU, as the senior went 1-2 from the line, but High Point used great defense down the stretch and connected on all four of its free-throw attempts to advance to the championship game with a 56-53 victory.
