Lady Barons Open With Win
Courtesy of BPC
Brewton-Parker College's women’s basketball team opened the 2022-23 season in neutral territory on Saturday afternoon with a matchup against Shawnee State (Ga.) in Marietta, Georgia. The Lady Barons (1-0) opened the new campaign with a solid win over the Bears (1-1), 77-68 in the Eagles’ Nest on the campus of Life University. “It’s always good to win on the road or at a neutral site,” Head Coach Steve Edwards said. “We played a tough and rugged team today. This was our first game of the season, and at times it was easy to tell. However, we looked like a good team at moments.” “We have to take care of the ball better and we have to be better on the boards,” Edwards added. “We will get back to work on Monday for a big week ahead of us.”
Angel McRae opened with the first two buckets of the new season to give BPC the lead early. Shawnee State responded with a quick 5-0 run to secure the lead before the Lady Barons answered with a 6-0 run to claim a five-point lead with just under five minutes remaining.
A pair of free throws from newcomer, Drexelle Ward boosted BPC’s lead to seven with 3:47 to play in the quarter. SSU knocked the deficit down to one point with an 8-2 run, leaving 2:33 on the clock. Samerria Bryant scored four of the last six points for Brewton-Parker to close out the quarter with a 21-17 lead over the Bears.
The Lady Barons opened the quarter on a 6-0 run in the first two minutes of action.
Madison Evans led the charge for BPC with eight points in the quarter, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe and 2-for-4 from the field.
Bryant secured six points in the quarter and sealed a 12-point lead for Brewton-Parker with a trey ball in the final seconds before the halftime break.
The Lady Barons closed out the period with an 18-10 advantage in the 10 minutes played, leading 39-27 at the half.
Cisley Copper knocked down a big three-pointer early in the quarter to give BPC a 15-point lead. After some back-and-forth between both teams trading scoring possessions, the Lady Barons eventually sped out to a 21-point lead after a 10-run to close out the half.
SSU knocked down one free throw to put the deficit to 61-41 after the end of three quarters. Both McRae and Evans led BPC with six points each with Evans grabbing four boards on way to a 22-14 performance in the third quarter.
Shawnee State surged early in the fourth quarter to knock down the Lady Barons’ advantage to just nine with nearly four minutes left to play.
Brewton-Parker held tight to the lead, moving back to a 13-point lead with 1:12 remaining on the clock. The Bears closed out the quarter with five points to move the deficit back down to single digits. However, Evans scored the final point of the game with a free throw to seal the nine-point win for Brewton- Parker. As a team, Brewton-Parker shot for 40.4% (23of-57) from the field, 19% (4-of-21) from three-point distance, and 67.5% (27-of-40) from the charity stripe. BPC held a 38-34 advantage in rebounding while also leading 11-7 in steals. Evans led the charge for the Lady Barons, scoring 20 points, securing six rebounds, and three steals. Both Tajahnae Wiggins and Bryant recorded 13 points apiece with Wiggins grabbing seven boards and Bryant snagging six. McRae led BPC off the glass with eight boards while also scoring 12 points. Keyanna Tolbert McRae split the lead in assists with three each.
BPC produced a 23-9 advantage in points off turnovers while also leading 19-6 in second-chance points. Brewton-Parker’s bench accounted for 23 points while Shawnee State’s notched 13. The Lady Barons’ largest lead was 21 points with 41 seconds left in the third quarter. Saturday’s matchup was the second meeting ever between the two programs with the Lady Barons leveling the all-time series 1-1. Brewton-Parker returns to the hardwood on Wednesday with a road contest at Point (Ga.) slated for a 5:00 p.m. tip-off.
