BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – No. 4 Gardner-Webb survived at comeback effort by No. 5 Presbyterian in the final minutes in play Monday night, with Jhessyka Williams sinking free throws with 1.3 seconds left to seal a 66-62 win in the 2021 Hercules Tires Big South Conference Women's Basketball Championship quarterfinals Monday evening.
 
Gardner-Webb (11-12) led by as many as 11 points, its largest lead of the night, at 61-50 with 4:03 to go after a three-point basket by Lauren Bevis, but the Blue Hose began to battle back with a 12-2 run, pulling within a single point at 63-62 with 26 seconds left.

Ki'Ari Cain was fouled during GWU's next possession, in which she made one of two free throws, putting the 'Dogs up by two points with 11 seconds left. 
 
PC's Nyah Wills would draw a foul on the opposite end of the court with just over five seconds on the clock, giving her the opportunity to tie the game, but she missed both free throws, with Williams pulling down the board following the final attempt.
 
Williams was quickly fouled, in which she knocked down both tries from the charity stripe to give Gardner-Webb a two-possession lead with 1.3 seconds on the clock, sealing the win.
 
Gardner-Webb was able to shake off a hot start on the evening by Presbyterian, in which the Blue Hose scored 23 points in the opening frame on 8-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-3 from long distance.  The 'Dogs trailed PC by 11 points at the end of the first period.
 
PC built its lead to a game-high 13 points at the onset of the second period, but the remainder of the frame was all GWU, as the 'Dogs clamped down defensively, only allowing one more basket by the Blue Hose in the quarter, while going on a 14-2 run to trail by just one point, 27-26, at halftime.
 
Both teams traded baskets in the early minutes of the third period until Gardner-Webb claimed the lead for the first time of the evening with 5:43 on the clock after a layup by Cain.  GWU outscored PC by a 12-4 margin over the remainder of the stanza to lead by nine as play headed to the final period.
 
Gardner-Webb was 23-of-65 (35.4 percent) from the floor on the night, including 5-of-23 (21.7 percent) from long distance, yet was an efficient 15-of-17 (88.2 percent) from the free throw line.  Presbyterian was 23-of-46 (50.0 percent) and 6-of-14 (42.9 percent) from beyond the arc, yet was 10-of-18 (55.6 percent) from the line.
 
Williams led all scorers on the evening with 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 3-of-6 from three-point range.  Bevis followed with 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting, while Big South Freshman of the Year Alasia Smith added 12 points, along with a team-high nine rebounds and four steals.
 
The Blue Hose had four scorers in double figures, led by Jade Compton with 16 points on 4-of-13 shooting.  Maleia Bracone had a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards.
 
The fourth-seeded Runnin' Bulldogs now advance to the Big South semifinals, where they face the league's regular season champion High Point.  The semifinal round of the 2021 Hercules Tires Big South Conference Women's Basketball Championship takes place Thursday evening, with No. 4 GWU and No. 1 HPU squaring off at 6:00 pm in High Point, N.C, with live coverage on ESPN+ (WatchESPN.com / ESPN App).