BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – A 14-0 run by Presbyterian midway through the second period doomed the Runnin' Bulldogs, as Gardner-Webb was unable to recover, falling to the visiting Blue Hose by a score of 60-50 in Big South Conference action on Tuesday evening.
 
Gardner-Webb (17-10, 7-8 Big South) led by a score of 15-10 with 7:01 left in the second period after a basket off of the glass by Ky'Asia Stanford.   Presbyterian (10-16, 7-8 Big South) answered with 6:10 left on a mid-range jumper by Riley Himm, and would hold the Runnin' Bulldogs scoreless over the next several minutes until Tierra Huntsman would connect with a layup in the final seconds of the quarter.
 
During that stretch, the Blue Hose knocked down six baskets, including a pair of three pointers by Kacie Hall.  Hall had the final ten points of PC's run, and finished the evening with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-9 from long distance.
 
Cortney Storey connected with a last-second basket to give Presbyterian a 26-17 lead at halftime.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs would rally to open the third period, outscoring PC by a 11-5 margin over the first 3:44 to pull within three points as Carley Plentovich made a pair of free throws with 6:16 on the clock.
 
Storey would hit a deep three pointer to end GWU's run with 5:32 remaining, and both teams would trade baskets throughout the remainder of the quarter, with a late three-point basket by Hall giving the Blue Hose a nine-point edge at 46-37 at the end of the period.
 
Gardner-Webb would get no traction in the final period, cutting its deficit down to as low as eight points with 5:07 left after a mid-range jump shot by Stanford, but Presbyterian would go on to take a ten-point victory at 60-50.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs made just 30.3 percent (20-of-66) of their attempts from the floor tonight, while Presbyterian did not have a fantastic offensive outing as well, making 33.3 percent (20-of-60) of its attempts.  Three-point shooting proved to be the biggest difference maker on the evening, as the Blue Hose were 9-of-30 (30.0 percent) from long distance, while GWU made just 3-of-19 attempts (15.8 percent).
 
Alexus Hill was Gardner-Webb's leading scorer with 11 points on a 3-of-12 outing.  Huntsman followed with 10 points, going 4-of-15 on the evening.
 
Gardner-Webb returns to action this Saturday afternoon, hosting High Point at 2:00 pm in the final home game of the 2017-18 season.  The senior class of Alexus Hill, Tierra Huntsman, and Celia Tibbs will be recognized prior to tip-off, with the game being broadcast on ESPN3 (WatchESPN.com).