BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. - Gardner-Webb women's basketball overcame a double-digit second-half deficit to knock off visiting Georgia Southern, 82-78, on Saturday in Boiling Springs, N.C.
The Eagles dropped their first contest of the season and fell to 2-1, while Gardner-Webb improved to 3-1 on the year.
Georgia Southern ended the first quarter on an 18-8 run to take a 22-18 lead over the Runnin' Bulldogs. Gardner-Webb fought back to tie the game at halftime, 37-37.
The Eagles opened up its largest lead of the game, 62-52, with just over a minute left in the third quarter but Gardner-Webb took advantage of 14 turnovers committed by Georgia Southern over the final 11 minutes of the contest to collect the come-from-behind victory.
Georgia Southern placed four players in double figures on the night, led by Terren Ward and Taya Gibson, who had 16 points apiece. Simone James added 12 points and Eden Johnson had 10 points in her first action of the season. Gardner-Webb also placed four players in double figures, led by Lauren Bevis and Jhessyka Williams, who had 18 points apiece.
Eagle of the Game
Ward added 10 rebounds to her 16 points to notch her first double-double of the season. She hit a pair of threes on the game and also added three steals on the evening.
Stat of the Game
Georgia Southern committed 27 turnovers in the contest, compared to just 13 for the Runnin' Bulldogs. It was the most turnovers for the Eagles since also committing 27 against Troy on January 27th of last season.
Quotables
Head Coach Anita Howard's comments on the game
"We challenged ourselves to play one of the best teams in the Big South Conference, on their home floor, early in the season. We ran into some road adversity and, unfortunately, we didn't handle it as well as we hoped. It's not the result we wanted, but there were some positives that we will take away from the experience. All of our goals are still in front of us. We will regroup, make corrections and definitely be prepared to respond on Tuesday."
Next Up
Georgia Southern concludes its three-game road swing by visiting Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday, November 22, for a 6 p.m. contest against the Wildcats in Daytona Beach, Fla.