STAUNTON, Va. - The Brevard College women's basketball team (8-3, 5-0 USA South) earned its third consecutive victory with a 78-56 road triumph over Mary Baldwin University (1-11, 1-4 USAS) on Wednesday afternoon in Staunton, Virginia.
The win marked BC's seventh in its last nine contests as the Tornados are off to an undefeated 5-0 start in conference play. Brevard's 8-3 start is the program's best in the NCAA era.
Junior forward Makenna Parkins led the way with 19 points on an impressive 8-of-11 shooting from the field while also tallying five rebounds. Lexi Shepard added 11 points and six rebounds in addition to a team-high four assists, while freshman forward Olivia Miller rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points.
Chyna Pouncey led all BC players with seven rebounds. Aysha Short and Journey Tyler each logged seven points and three steals apiece, while Christena Rhone posted a seven-point performance in her collegiate debut for the Tornados.
MBU's Mekayla Clarke scored 17 points to lead the Fighting Squirrels, as A'Cetta Farrait (14 points) and Codie Heilig (11 points) also reached double figures.
Brevard's potent offense shot 41% from the field and hit 10 3-pointers en route to the win, while BC dominated the glass with a 49-34 margin. The Tornados moved the ball well, logging 20 assists on 30 made field goals. Brevard's reserve unit scored 24 points off the bench.
Mary Baldwin was able to keep the contest within single digits through a large portion of the first half, taking a pair of leads in the first quarter. BC first began to pull away with a 10-0 run that lasted until the 7:42 mark of the second quarter after a Shepard made three-ball.
MBU cut the deficit back down to four points, 22-18, before the Tornados outscored the hosts 15-12 down the stretch to take a seven-point, 37-30 edge into the halftime intermission.
Brevard was able to outscore Mary Baldwin 24-16 in the third quarter to push the lead to 15 points. Parkins closed out her 10th double-digit scoring performance of the season with six points in the fourth period as the Tornados cruised to a 22-point win, 78-56.
The Tornados return to the Boshamer Gymnasium for a USA South doubleheader for the BC basketball programs, as Brevard faces Methodist University on Saturday at 4 p.m.
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-BC-