Box Score by Benny Benton
MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – Barton College senior Ashley Thornton helped her team escape a first-half deficit by leading a 13-2 run to give the Lady Bulldogs a brief lead, but the University of Mount Olive ran away from BC to start the second half in claiming a 79-66 win Tuesday night in Kornegay Arena.
The loss ended any hopes for Barton (12-14, 9-9) of hosting a first-round game in the 2014 Conference Carolinas Tournament on Saturday and sealed a home date for the Lady Trojans (16-10, 11-7). Barton will either play at No. 2 seed Belmont Abbey or No. 4 King, depending on the outcome of Thursday's makeup game between Erskine and Pfeiffer.
Thornton hit a pair of 3-pointers as the Lady Bulldogs turned a 20-13 deficit with 9:53 remaining in the opening period into a four-point lead at 26-22 with 6:31 left. Tiffany Webster also hit a 3-pointer during the stretch, with Caila Carter scoring a layup and Nyeshea Willie making two free throws.
The game was tied at 32-all with 1:07 to go before intermission when the Lady Trojans closed out the half on an 8-2 run that included 3-pointers by Kirksten Mitchell and Jasmine McDonald and a layup at the buzzer by Katie Paschal.
Mount Olive put the game away at the start of the second half. Barton missed its first three shots and turned the ball over once, while the Lady Trojans made their first four shots to push their 40-34 halftime lead out to 14 points at 48-34.
Barton would get the deficit under double-digits just once more in the contest, pulling within nine on a Brianna Thomas jumper with 7:33 left. However, Mount Olive's Anamaria Zjacic scored on a tip-in off an offensive rebound roughly 30 seconds later, and the Lady Trojans cruised from there.
The Lady Bulldogs played the final 11:41 without Willie, who was helped off the court with an injury. Willie, the nation's third-leading scorer, tossed in 14 points before departing. In her place, junior Kaila Lea stepped up with 14 points as well, a career high. Thomas collected 13 points and Thornton added 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds.
The 5-4 Thornton leading the team in rebounding was symbolic of the troubles the Lady Bulldogs had on the boards in both games with Mount Olive this year. In the first meeting in Wilson, the Lady Trojans enjoyed a 52 to 38 rebounding edge, and on Tuesday, Mount Olive outgained BC 47 to 35 on the glass. The Lady Trojans scored 16 second-chance points off those boards, while Barton managed just four.
Ty Wallace had a game-high 12 rebounds for the Lady Trojans, while McDonald collected 11 as part of a standout night in which she nearly recorded a triple-double. The senior also poured in 22 points and had eight assists. Mitchell led all scorers with 25 points, and Paschal contributed 21.
If Erskine wins on Thursday against Pfeiffer, then Barton will be the No. 7 seed and visit No. 2 Belmont Abbey. If the Flying Fleet loses, then the Lady Bulldogs would jump to the No. 5 seed and travel to No. 4 King.
Barton defeated Belmont Abbey in both regular-season meetings and split with King, each team winning on the other's home court.
