ROCK HILL, S.C. – Ky'Asia Stanford scored a career-high 18 points, while Gardner-Webb survived a comeback attempt by Winthrop to take a 66-59 win on Saturday evening in Big South Conference action.
 
Gardner-Webb (14-6, 4-4 Big South) had four scorers in double-digits, led by Stanford and Hill, who each had 18 points, followed by Tierra Huntsman and Carley Plentovich, who each added 12 points.
 
Winthrop (1-18, 0-8 Big South) was led offensively by Emily Kelley, who had 17 points, followed by Anika Riley with 12 points.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs made 25-of-61 (41.0 percent) of their attempts from the floor, while the Eagles connected on 24-of-55 (43.6 percent) of their chances.   Points off of turnovers proved to be a key factor in the contest, as GWU outscored Winthrop, 17-9, in that category.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs opened the contest with a quick 6-0 run over the opening 1:54, highlighted by a pair of baskets by Celia Tibbs.  GWU would lead by that same margin at 11-5 after Huntsman knocked down a pair of free throws with 5:08 on the clock.
 
Winthrop began to chip away at its deficit on its next possession, as Noell Kellers connected from downtown with 4:25 remaining.  The Eagles would tie the game at 13-13 with 2:19 to go after a jumper by Miquela Santoro, and would later take a 16-15 lead on an old-fashioned three-point play by Kayla Atkins with 1:27 left in the frame.
 
Hill would put Gardner-Webb on top once again with a drive to the basket with 48 seconds left, but Winthrop would score the final three points of the period to lead 19-17.
 
The Eagles opened the second period with a three pointer by Kelley to lead by five points at 22-17 with 9:42 to go.  Both teams would trade baskets before Gardner-Webb would score 11 unanswered points over a span of 4:08 to lead by six points at 30-24 with 3:31 remaining in the period.
 
Neither team would score throughout the remainder of the quarter, as both teams would go 0-for-4 from the floor during that stretch to keep the score at 30-24 at the half.
 
Gardner-Webb would reignite its offense at the onset of the third period, scoring eight unanswered points, highlighted by a pair of mid-range jumpers by Stanford, over the opening 2:22 to build a game-high 14-point lead at 38-24 with 7:38 on the clock.
 
Winthrop broke its scoring drought with 7:00 on the clock on a jumper by Atkins.  Gardner-Webb held the Eagles scoreless for a stretch of 10:56, forcing seven turnovers during that time.
 
The Eagles outscored GWU by eight points over the remainder of the quarter to pull within six points at 48-42.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs increased their lead to eight points after a free throw by Hill with 9:05 left, but Winthrop would score five straight points to pull within three points a 53-50 with 8:01 left.
 
Gardner-Webb answered with both a jumper and a pair of free throws by Huntsman to lead by seven with 6:58 to go, but two quick baskets by Riley would again pull the Eagles within three points with 6:00 remaining.
 
Plentovich would knock down two key baskets from long range to give GWU a 63-56 lead with 2:46 to go, and the Runnin' Bulldogs would knock down 3-of-4 attempts from the free throw line over the remainder of the game to go on to take a 66-59 decision.
 
Gardner-Webb returns home for its next matchup, hosting UNC Asheville on Tuesday, January 30 at 7:00 pm inside Paul Porter Arena.  The game will be broadcast live on the Big South Network (www.bigsouthsports.com).