BREVARD, N.C. - Senior guard Ty'She Washington posted a season-best 21 points, while Makenna Parkins added 15 points, but the Brevard College women's basketball team (7-5, 3-1 USAS) fell in a tightly-contested matchup, 69-62, to first-place Berea College (12-3, 7-0 USAS) on Saturday at the Boshamer Gymnasium.
Washington, a senior from Charlotte, North Carolina, saw her first action since November 30, going 5-for-12 from the field with three 3-pointers and a perfect 8-for-8 mark at the charity stripe.
Parkins, a sophomore forward from Marion, North Carolina, added 15 points on a flawless 5-for-5 from the field with a 3-pointer and four made free throws. Avery Lockwood added seven points and six rebounds, while Destiny Williams totaled six points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
Berea was paced by three double-digit scorers as Aaliyah Hampton (26 points), Destiny Combs (19 points), and Dailyn Spalding (11 points) all reached double figures, while Destanie Love controlled the boards with 17 rebounds.
Brevard was able to outshoot Berea from the field, 34% to 30%, while hitting five 3's compared to Berea's one. The Mountaineers got to the line early and often, going 32-for-41 from the line, while Brevard shot a season-beat 17-for-18 from the charity stripe.
The Mountaineers were able to force 17 Tornado turnovers, turning those into 16 points. Berea was able to edge Brevard in points in the paint (32-28) and fastbreak points (16-8), while Brevard's bench outscored Berea's 20-0.
The Tornados got off to a hot start, jumping out to an 8-2 lead after 3-pointers from Shakirah Thompson and Washington. Berea battled back as both sides traded leads, but with the score tied at 14-14, the Tornados used a 9-0 run to close the quarter out, holding a nine-point lead.
Berea answered back with a 7-0 run of its own, keeping the score within one possession throughout the quarter, as Brevard clung to a 32-30 lead as the two teams went into the halftime intermission.
Berea began the second half with an 8-2 stretch to take its first lead since the first quarter, 38-34, with 7:26 left in the third period. The Mountaineers extended their advantage to as many as eight points, 46-38, at the 4:59 mark. The Tornados were able to battle back, cutting the Berea lead down to just two points, 51-49, after a pair of Lexi Shepard free throws, before the visitors took a four-point advantage into the game's final period.
Berea pushed its lead back up to a seven-point margin, 60-53, before a Parkins 3-pointer at the top of the key slashed the advantage to just four points with 6:10 left to play. Berea was able to string together a critical 8-2 stretch over the next five minutes that helped the Mountaineers seal the victory, pushing their lead up to 68-58. Williams was able to score a pair of buckets 11 second apart from each other, but the effort proved too late as Berea iced the contest with a made free throw to claim the 69-62 conference triumph.
The Tornados are scheduled to return to action with a pair of USA South home contests on Friday and Saturday, January 21-22. Brevard will square off vs. LaGrange College on Friday at 6 p.m. before a 2 p.m. Saturday tip at The Bosh against Covenant College.
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-BC-