SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Barton women's basketball team (28-1) captured the 2022 Conference Carolinas Tournament Championship with a 77-58 victory over Francis Marion (18-13) Sunday afternoon at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium on the campus of Wofford College.
The Bulldogs, the top seed in the tournament, won the league championship for the third time in school history – 2011 and 2018 were the other seasons – and ran their winning streak to 22 games. The Patriots were seeded seventh.
Barton was led by senior center
Shanika Peterkin (Virginia Beach, Va.) and senior forward
Jami Tham (Arlington, Va.) with 17 points each as the Bulldogs took control in the third period after trailing by a point (34-33) at halftime. Barton outscored Francis Marion, 33-15, in the third stanza and never looked back.
Peterkin and Tham added 17 and 16 rebounds, respectively, to registered double-doubles while Peterkin was named tournament Most Valuable Player. Barton also defeated Francis Marion for the third time this season.
The Patriots, who won four previous games in the conference championship to get to the final contest, was paced by Lauryn Taylor (Blythewood, S.C.) with 23 points and 12 rebounds. The Bulldogs held a 49-32 edge on the boards and received 16 points from sophomore guard
Lauren Walker (Charlotte, N.C.).
With the win, Barton has automatically qualified for the NCAA Division II National Tournament for the fourth time in the last five seasons. The regional selections will be announced later Sunday night at 10:00 p.m., at ncaa.com.
2022 Conference Carolinas
Women's Basketball All-Tournament Team
Shanika Peterkin, Barton - Most Outstanding Player
Michelle Gainey, Barton
Akira Wiggins, Barton
Scarlett Gilmore, Francis Marion
Aniyah Oliver, Francis Marion
Destiny Robinson, Chowan
Ayonna Cotten, Mount Olive
