University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Saturday, March 4
Asheville, NC
2:00 p.m.
UNC Asheville
15-14, 9-9BSC
67
vs
49
Gardner-Webb
11-18, 6-12BSC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardner Webb | 9 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 49 |
| UNC Asheville | 11 | 14 | 16 | 26 | 67 |
Women’s Basketball Picks Up 67-49 Win On Senior Day
03.04.2017 | Women's Basketball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – It was a fitting end to the regular-season for the UNC Asheville women's basketball team. The Bulldogs honored their four seniors, Ja'Da Brayboy, Tianna Knuckles, Chatori Major and KJ Weaver, prior to the game and then picked up a key Big South Conference victory, 67-49 over Gardner-Webb inside Kimmel Arena.
Before the game, the Bulldogs (15-14, 9-9 Big South) recognized the quartet for their outstanding achievements both on the court and off of it. Then, all four started their final regular-season game together despite Brayboy and Knuckles being injured.
After the ceremonial start, the home Bulldogs scored the first two points, but Gardner-Webb (11-18, 6-12 Big South) quickly found the answer. At the first break in the action, with 4:47 to go in the opening quarter, the two teams were deadlocked at 7-7.
Asheville was able to edge ahead 11-9 after the first quarter, but Gardner-Webb didn't give Asheville much breathing room. Every time the home Bulldogs pulled away in the first half, the visitors found a way to answer. With two minutes to go in the second quarter, the two teams were tied for the fifth time at 21-all.
The Bulldogs in blue and white were able to edge ahead for a 25-23 advantage heading into the halftime intermission despite a last-second attempt by Gardner-Webb's Tierra Hunstman.
The Runnin' Bulldogs of GWU opened the second half by edging out to a couple leads over the first few minutes, but Asheville retook the lead for good with 5:41 to go in the third quarter when Jessica Wall hit a jumper in the paint. The home Bulldogs closed the quarter on a 9-5 run to take a 41-36 lead into the fourth quarter.
The final quarter saw Asheville close out the game out-scoring Gardner-Webb 26-13 to claim the 67-49 win.
Four players finished in double figure scoring led by Weaver's 14 points. The senior center went 6-for-9 from the field, hit both of her free throw attempts, corralled in eight rebounds and had two blocks in 26 minutes of work.
Sonora Dengokl and Bronaza Fitzgerald both ended the game with 12 points while Major scored 10 points. Dengokl went 4-for-7 from the field, converted all four of her free throw attempts and just missed out on a double-double with nine boards. Major led the team with two three-pointers, giving her 69 three-pointers on the season.
Hunstman led the Runnin' Bulldogs with a game-high 15 points. She went 5-for-12 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the three-point arc in 37 minutes of work.
As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 47.4 percent (27-for-57) from the field, including a blistering 66.7 percent (8-for-12) in the fourth quarter alone. On the other side of the court, Gardner-Webb shot 33.3 percent (18-for-54) from the field.
BULLDOG BITES
SENIOR DAY: Saturday marked Senior Day for Ja'Da Brayboy, Tianna Knuckles, Chatori Major and KJ Weaver. The quartet has appeared in 410 games combined, scored 3,350 points, brought down 1,643 rebounds, swiped 342 steals and converted 1,207 field goals during their time in Asheville.
THREE FOR THREE: Senior guard Chatori Major is chasing teammate Tianna Knuckles for history. Last season, Knuckles set the school record for most three-pointers made in a single season with 73 treys. It was a mark that had stood for 25 years prior to Knuckles' junior year. After Saturday afternoon's game, Major now has 69 three-pointers on the year.
CORRALLING THEM IN: Senior KJ Weaver finished Saturday's win over Gardner-Webb with eight rebounds, giving her 712 over her illustrious career, including 231 this season. Her 712 career rebounds has her fifth in Asheville's NCAA Division I era and seventh all-time. The next milestone will be 720 career rebounds for sixth all-time and fourth in the D-1 era. Tonisha Jackson (1999-2004) currently holds those marks. Weaver's 231 rebounds as a senior are a career-high for rebounds in a season for her.
UP NEXT
Asheville will next compete in the 2017 Big South Conference Women's Basketball Tournament. The tourney will be hosted by Liberty in Lynchburg, Va. The Bulldogs will be the No. 7 seed in the tournament and will play the No. 10 seed on Thursday, March 9, at 8 p.m.
QUOTABLES
"Today was a special day for our seniors. I couldn't be more proud of our team in working hard to get them a win in their last home game of an amazing career. Gardner-Webb battled hard and the first half was tough. Our girls were more determined in the second half and our energy was much better." - Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
Before the game, the Bulldogs (15-14, 9-9 Big South) recognized the quartet for their outstanding achievements both on the court and off of it. Then, all four started their final regular-season game together despite Brayboy and Knuckles being injured.
After the ceremonial start, the home Bulldogs scored the first two points, but Gardner-Webb (11-18, 6-12 Big South) quickly found the answer. At the first break in the action, with 4:47 to go in the opening quarter, the two teams were deadlocked at 7-7.
Asheville was able to edge ahead 11-9 after the first quarter, but Gardner-Webb didn't give Asheville much breathing room. Every time the home Bulldogs pulled away in the first half, the visitors found a way to answer. With two minutes to go in the second quarter, the two teams were tied for the fifth time at 21-all.
The Bulldogs in blue and white were able to edge ahead for a 25-23 advantage heading into the halftime intermission despite a last-second attempt by Gardner-Webb's Tierra Hunstman.
The Runnin' Bulldogs of GWU opened the second half by edging out to a couple leads over the first few minutes, but Asheville retook the lead for good with 5:41 to go in the third quarter when Jessica Wall hit a jumper in the paint. The home Bulldogs closed the quarter on a 9-5 run to take a 41-36 lead into the fourth quarter.
The final quarter saw Asheville close out the game out-scoring Gardner-Webb 26-13 to claim the 67-49 win.
Four players finished in double figure scoring led by Weaver's 14 points. The senior center went 6-for-9 from the field, hit both of her free throw attempts, corralled in eight rebounds and had two blocks in 26 minutes of work.
Sonora Dengokl and Bronaza Fitzgerald both ended the game with 12 points while Major scored 10 points. Dengokl went 4-for-7 from the field, converted all four of her free throw attempts and just missed out on a double-double with nine boards. Major led the team with two three-pointers, giving her 69 three-pointers on the season.
Hunstman led the Runnin' Bulldogs with a game-high 15 points. She went 5-for-12 from the field and 3-for-4 from beyond the three-point arc in 37 minutes of work.
As a team, Asheville ended the game shooting 47.4 percent (27-for-57) from the field, including a blistering 66.7 percent (8-for-12) in the fourth quarter alone. On the other side of the court, Gardner-Webb shot 33.3 percent (18-for-54) from the field.
BULLDOG BITES
SENIOR DAY: Saturday marked Senior Day for Ja'Da Brayboy, Tianna Knuckles, Chatori Major and KJ Weaver. The quartet has appeared in 410 games combined, scored 3,350 points, brought down 1,643 rebounds, swiped 342 steals and converted 1,207 field goals during their time in Asheville.
THREE FOR THREE: Senior guard Chatori Major is chasing teammate Tianna Knuckles for history. Last season, Knuckles set the school record for most three-pointers made in a single season with 73 treys. It was a mark that had stood for 25 years prior to Knuckles' junior year. After Saturday afternoon's game, Major now has 69 three-pointers on the year.
CORRALLING THEM IN: Senior KJ Weaver finished Saturday's win over Gardner-Webb with eight rebounds, giving her 712 over her illustrious career, including 231 this season. Her 712 career rebounds has her fifth in Asheville's NCAA Division I era and seventh all-time. The next milestone will be 720 career rebounds for sixth all-time and fourth in the D-1 era. Tonisha Jackson (1999-2004) currently holds those marks. Weaver's 231 rebounds as a senior are a career-high for rebounds in a season for her.
UP NEXT
Asheville will next compete in the 2017 Big South Conference Women's Basketball Tournament. The tourney will be hosted by Liberty in Lynchburg, Va. The Bulldogs will be the No. 7 seed in the tournament and will play the No. 10 seed on Thursday, March 9, at 8 p.m.
QUOTABLES
"Today was a special day for our seniors. I couldn't be more proud of our team in working hard to get them a win in their last home game of an amazing career. Gardner-Webb battled hard and the first half was tough. Our girls were more determined in the second half and our energy was much better." - Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick
Team Stats
GWU
AVL
FG%
.333
.474
3FG%
.400
.231
FT%
.563
.769
RB
29
43
TO
12
12
STL
6
5
Game Leaders
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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