Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – Junior Kianna Wynn delivered 26 points and 17 rebounds in her season debut, and redshirt senior Alex Kimble drained seven 3-pointers in a 25-point effort as Barton College routed Converse College, 103-53, Saturday afternoon in Wilson Gymnasium.
The Lady Bulldogs (5-5 overall, 2-2 in Conference Carolinas), posted a 50-point margin of victory in a game for the first time since defeating the same Converse program, 102-52, in Spartanburg, S.C., on January 7, 2012. That matchup also marked the last time Barton's women surpassed the century mark in a game.
The victory was Barton's second blowout win in a row, coming on the heels of a 76-50 triumph over Emmanuel College last Saturday. The Lady Bulldogs did not trail in either of those two outings.
Wynn, a two-time all-conference honoree and 2016-17 all-region selection, made her presence back in the BC lineup felt immediately, scoring the game's first four points and then collecting an offensive rebound and kicking the ball out to Kimble for a 3-pointer on the next possession. Kimble added another 3-pointer on the next trip down the floor, giving Barton a 10-0 lead less than three minutes into the game.
After an early timeout, Converse (5-7, 1-3) settled down and scored the game's next four points. The Valkyries got the margin back to six one other time late in the first quarter, at 16-10 after a 3-pointer by Brianna James, but Summer Baer answered with a 3-pointer for Barton, and the Lady Bulldogs closed the first quarter with a 21-12 advantage.
Barton pushed its lead to 11 at 26-15 on a Wynn putback with 8:48 left in the second quarter, and Converse never cut the deficit back to single digits again. The Lady Bulldogs led 42-27 at intermission, then put the game away after starting the third period on a 17-0 run.
BC shot 56 percent from the field (22 of 39) and scored 61 points over the final two quarters, while the Valkyries made just six field goals over that same span (on 35 attempts, 17 percent) and scored just 26 total points.
Wynn collected 11 of her 17 rebounds on the offensive end. Barton out-rebounded Converse 60 to 43 overall, and Karimah Dean joined Wynn in double-figures with 14 boards. Dean also collected a game-high six steals.
Dinah Neal added 14 points and four assists for the Lady Bulldogs, which saw all 16 players on the roster record at least one point or rebound in the contest.
James and Jordan Brooks each scored 10 points to pace Converse, and Shakori Jennings-Shuler pulled down a team-high nine rebounds.
The contest was the final one for Barton before Christmas. The Lady Bulldogs will return to action on Saturday, Dec. 30, with a 4 p.m. matchup at Fayetteville State University.
