WINGATE, N.C. --- A 22-0 run spanning the second and third quarters lifted Wingate University to a 77-45 victory over Tusculum College in a South Atlantic Conference women's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Cuddy Arena.
The Bulldogs (15-4, 11-3 SAC) shot 50.9 percent from the field and outscored the Pioneers 50-10 in the paint to win for the 10th time in their last 11 games. Marta Miscenko led Wingate with 16 points and five rebounds while Danasia Witherspoon and Kristina Rumplasch added 13 points apiece.
Kasey Johnson led the Pioneers (4-14, 3-11 SAC) with 13 points, three rebounds and four blocked shots and Callie Patterson also reached double figures with 11 points for Tusculum, which shot 39.5 percent (17-for-43) from the field but lost the rebounding battle to Wingate by a 43-17 margin.
The Pioneers led 24-21 on a three-pointer by Johnson with 3:20 left in the first half but went 0-for-6 from the field with six turnovers over the next 8 minutes, 7 seconds as the Bulldogs built a 43-24 advantage midway through the third quarter.
There were two ties and three lead changes in the first quarter, which ended with Tusculum and Wingate tied 13-13. The Bulldogs led 9-5 midway through the period, but the Pioneers scored eight in a row including back-to-back three-pointers from Maelyn Head to go on top 13-9 with 2:24 left in the quarter.
Wingate regained the lead early in the second quarter, but a basket by Kristen Atwell tied the game at 19-19 with 4:42 remaining in the half. Two free throws by Patterson and a three-pointer by Johnson put the Pioneers on top 24-21, but the Bulldogs responded with 11 consecutive points to go ahead 32-24 on a layup by Amber Neely just before the buzzer.
The Bulldogs shot an even 50 percent (12-for-24) from the field in the first half, with Miscenko leading the way with 10 points, four rebounds and three assists. Patterson paced the Pioneers with seven points in the opening half, with six from Head, but the Pioneers went 9-for-24 (37.5 percent) from the floor and 4-for-10 on three-pointers in the half.
The run continued in the third quarter as the Bulldogs scored the first 11 points, including five from Witherspoon, to go on top 43-24 with 7:04 left in the third quarter. Tusculum finally broke through with 5:13 remaining in the period on a jumper by Johnson, but the Bulldogs outscored the Pioneers 28-8 in the quarter to take a 60-32 lead into the final 10 minutes.
Wingate took its largest lead of the game at 77-44 on two free throws by Taylor Helms with 1:59 remaining, and a foul shot from Tusculum's Monica Roberts with 1:44 left was the final scoring in the game.
Johnson reached double figures for the 10th time in 11 games by going 5-for-7 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, to finish with 13 points. Head also hit a pair of threes and went 3-for-4 from the floor and finished with eight points off the Tusculum bench, while Jasmine Queen tallied seven points on 3-for-6 shooting in 25 minutes of action.
Caroline Averette hit both of her three-point attempts and finished with nine points for the Bulldogs, who were a perfect 3-for-3 from long range as a team in the game. Alex Tomlinson contributed eight points, four rebounds and a game-high five assists for Wingate.
The Bulldogs scored 27 points off Tusculum's 19 turnovers, while the Pioneers had just 10 points off Wingate's 15 miscues. Wingate finished with 18 offensive rebounds which led to 19 second-chance points, and the Bulldogs' bench outscored the Pioneer reserves by a 29-18 margin.
Tusculum will return home for its next two games, starting on Wednesday, Feb. 1 against Anderson at 6 p.m. at Pioneer Arena.
