It was a fantastic night of basketball in The Templeton Center. The Lady Blue Hose were able to complete the comeback for their first win in conference play as the defeat The USC Upstate Lady Spartans 59-58. It started out as a tough night for PC. They struggled the first half offensively shooting just 18% from the field in the first half. Paige Kindseth would be a bright spot in the first half and would lead all scorers at halftime with 9 points. However, they closed the half with a 3:44 drought and the Lady Spartans would take a 37-21 lead into the half.
The Lady Blue Hose would continue to fight through the 2nd half with very stingy defense. The Lady Spartans would have a lot of trouble with the press that PC was putting on and would commit 25 turnovers for the game. While PC would continue in the 3rd quarter struggling shooting the ball they would continue to force turnovers and make the Spartans work for any points they would get. Ashley Carillo would provide a much needed spark from the bench finishing with a career high 16 points and would help put the Lady Blue Hose in striking distance
WIth the game winding down and PC down by 1 point USC Upstate seemed to be in control. However, a fantastic steal on the inbound by Kindseth would give the Lady Blue Hose the ball pack. Kindreth would then drive to the basket and draw the foul. At the line she would be cool as a cucumber and knock down both free throws which would seal the deal and give PC their first conference win. Kindseth would lead all scorers with 17 points.
After the game Coach Tiffani Sardin was very excited. After a tough start to conference play, Coach Sardin was able to get her first conference win and give her team something to build on. This Saturday they will travel to UNC Asheville to face Lady Bulldogs at 2 pm. After an outstanding 4th quarter the Lady Blue Hose will try to build on that and get their 2nd win in a row on the road in a hostile environment.
Here is Coach Sardin speaking after the game