ROCK HILL, S.C. - On the road for its first Big South match-up of the season, the Gardner-Webb women's basketball team (4-11, 1-0 Big South) got 21 points from junior guard Amina Gray on Wednesday afternoon, scoring a 54-48 win at Winthrop (7-8. 0-1 Big South)

Offense would be at a premium on Wednesday afternoon, with Gardner-Webb and Winthrop combining for just 17 first-quarter points. The Runnin' Bulldogs trailed 12-5 through the first 10 minutes, which included a scoreless drought over the 4:48 for both teams. In what would become her signature performance for GWU this season, Gray scored the Dawgs first five points of the game, a three with 6:26 left and a layup with 5:28 to play

Gardner-Webb found its footing in the second quarter en route to a 23-20 halftime lead. Gray added a second triple with 8:56 to go to extend her run of the Dawgs first eight points, ahead of redshirt senior guard Jaelyn Acker cashing in with 8:15 to go, bringing GWU to within one down 12-11. Junior forward Amiria Ofunniyn spun free in the paint at 4:23, handing Gardner-Webb its first lead at 16-14. Acker beat the halftime buzzer with a layup and the Runnin' Bulldogs would in turn allow only eight second quarter points

The Runnin' Bulldogs scored a game-high 18 points in the third quarter, including 11 from Gray, to take  41-37 lead into the final frame. The junior guard couldn't miss ahead of the third quarter media, knocking down two shots from long range in the opening minutes. She'd add a third of her game-high five made threes with 3:34 to play in the third. Two late free throws from senior guard Nyla Walker sent the game to the fourth

GWU pushed its lead to as many as 11 in the fourth quarter before seeing out the victory. Freshman guard Makayla Legette had a big final frame, with her layup with 2:59 to go putting the Dawgs in front 52-41. Gardner-Webb would hold on from there, moving to 1-0 in the Big South with a 54-48 victory

LEADERS
Gray was excellent for Gardner-Webb, scoring a game-high 21 points, hitting eight of the Dawgs 17 made field goals and five of eight three-pointers, junior guard Anaya Harris scored nine points, Acker posted eight with two made three-pointers, and Ofunniyin scored six points with a team-high eight rebounds

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Gardner-Webb finished 17-of-50 as a team, with Gray hitting eight of those shots from the floor. Meanwhile, the Runnin' Bulldogs held Winthrop to 32% from the floor overall, 19% from three, and forced 24 turnovers

UP NEXT
GWU is back in action on January 7th, hosting UNC Asheville at 7 pm for its Big South home opener