MARS HILL, N.C. --- Maddie Gillie drilled nine three-pointers and scored 32 points to lead Mars Hill University to an 80-67 victory over Tusculum University in South Atlantic Conference women's basketball Wednesday evening at Stanford Arena.
Jo Snow added 23 points and seven assists for the Lions (10-11, 4-7 SAC), who outrebounded the Pioneers 51-37 and had 20 second-chance points off 23 offensive boards. The Lions shot just 33.3 percent (26-for-78) for the game, but went 10-for-19 from the floor in the fourth quarter.
Monique Shim led the Pioneers (3-15, 1-11 SAC) with 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting from three-point range, while Faith Silva and Ni'Kiah Chesterfield scored 16 points apiece. The Pioneers trailed by as many as 13 points in the second quarter but grabbed the lead early in the third, only to see the Lions regain the lead for good with an 11-2 run.
Gillie, who entered the game leading the SAC in made three-pointers with 63, shot 9-for-22 from beyond the arc for the Lions, who hit 14 three-pointers in 38 attempts as a team. She scored 18 of her 32 points in the first half to help Mars Hill take a 32-28 lead at intermission. Snow sank five three-pointers and went 6-for-6 from the foul line for the Lions, who were 14-for-17 from the stripe in the game.
Silva reached 1,500 career points on a layup with 54 seconds remaining, in the 100th start of her collegiate career. Silva scored 788 points in three seasons at Arizona Western College, 529 points in one season at WVU Tech and has 183 points so far this season with the Pioneers.
Chesterfield, who reached double figures in scoring for the 11th time this season, shot 6-for-11 from the field and 4-for-4 from the foul line, while sharing the team lead with six rebounds and blocking a season-high five shots.
Gillie made three three-pointers in the first three minutes to give the Lions an early 9-0 lead, while the Pioneers missed their first eight shots until a jumper from Silva with 5:00 to go in the opening quarter. Gillie hit her fourth three with 4:01 remaining for a 12-2 Mars Hill lead, and a late basket from Jadiyah Peoples left Mars Hill with a 16-7 advantage after one.
A three-pointer from the Pioneers' Jordyn Roderick opened the second-quarter scoring, but another three from Gillie was part of a 7-0 run that gave the Lions a 23-10 lead with 6:21 remaining in the first half. Back-to-back three-pointers from Lexi Patty and Shim cut the Lions' lead to 26-20 with 3:57 to go, and Chesterfield scored the Pioneers' last eight points of the half. However, Snow hit a three-pointer just before the halftime buzzer to give Mars Hill a 32-28 lead at intermission.
Gillie shot 5-for-14 from three-point range and led all players with 18 points in the first half for Mars Hill, with Snow adding eight points. The Lions shot 28.2 percent (11-for-39) from the field and 7-for-23 from three-point range (30.4 percent) in the half. Chesterfield led Tusculum with 10 points in the first half, with five each from Roderick and Patty, as the Pioneers were 10-for-31 (32.3 percent) from the floor and 4-for-15 from deep.
The Pioneers opened the third quarter with an 8-0 run, with back-to-back three-pointers from Silva giving the Pioneers a 32-28 lead with 8:24 left in the quarter. Tusculum would hold the lead until another Gillie three-pointer put Mars Hill back in front 40-38 with 5:00 left in the quarter. The Lions would push their lead to 46-40 on two free throws from Snow with 2:24 remaining, and another late three from Snow sent the Lions to the final quarter holding a 49-44 lead.
Tusculum trailed 54-49 following a three-pointer from Shim with 8:45 left, but Mars Hill broke the game open with a 10-1 run over the next two minutes, capped by a fourth-chance three-point play from Jaquoria Rucker with 6:47 to go for a 64-50 Mars Hill lead. The Pioneers would get no closer than 10 on a three from Shim with 3:57 to play, as Snow and Rucker combined for nine of the Lions' final 11 points.
Roderick finished with seven points and five rebounds in a season-high 23 minutes off the bench for the Pioneers, while Jenna Kallenberg hit two threes and finished with six points. Patty finished with five points along with six rebounds and a team-high five assists.
Mars Hill, which leads the SAC in rebounding at 44.0 per game, received nine rebounds apiece from Tateyoina Harris and Aaliyah El, while Peoples had seven points and eight boards in 25 minutes off the bench.
The Pioneers will play five of their seven games in February at home, starting on Saturday, Feb. 3 against Newberry at 2 p.m. The Wolves, who beat the Pioneers 55-44 at home on Dec. 18, fell to 6-14 overall and 4-8 in the SAC with an 88-75 loss at Anderson on Wednesday.
