CHARLESTON, S.C. – Gardner-Webb jumped out to a 21-8 lead after one quarter and rolled to an 86-65 win at Charleston Southern Thursday to open Big South play.

Jhessyka Williams flirted with a triple-double, posting 19 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in the win to lead the Runnin' Bulldogs (9-4, 1-0 Big South).

Alasia Smith supplied 14 points, 11 rebounds and four steals, Lauren Bevis and Ki'Ari Cain each had 13 points and Layken Cox scored 12 to power a balanced offensive effort.

Cain recorded her 319th career assist to move into third all-time in program history.

Gardner-Webb picked up its pace in the second quarter to score 27 points and lead 48-26 by halftime. GWU led by as many as 29 points with 1:54 left in the third period.

The defensive effort was notable, with 24 turnovers forced by GWU that turned into 24 points. GWU had 10 steals scored 12 points on the break. Coach Alex Simmons' squad saw 14 players see action on Thursday.

In addition to the five in double figures, Gardner-Webb got seven points off the bench from L'Mia Littlejohn – who knocked down 3-of-5 shots in 12 minutes of action.

Gardner-Webb shot 39.2 percent from the floor (29-of-74) and made eight threes – but made its living by getting downhill and to the rim. GWU knocked in 20-of-25 free throws Thursday (80.0 percent) and outscored the Buccaneers 20-6 on second-chance points. The 'Dogs also held an edge on the backboards – led by Williams and Smith.

Charleston Southern shot a solid 47.5 percent for the game (28-of-59) and made six treys, but had only two women score in double digits. Catherine Alben led the way with 16 points and Kennedi Jackson scored 12 points and led the way with 10 rebounds.

Gardner-Webb returns home on Saturday afternoon, closing out the calendar year with a 2:00 pm battle against High Point in Paul Porter Arena.

The game is a matchup of the two teams tied atop the Big South's preseason poll. Saturday's action will stream live on ESPN+ (WatchESPN.com).