On a crucial Wednesday evening, with the Big South Conference winding down, Presbyterian basketball experienced mixed results in games against USC Upstate.

The women’s team slipped past the Spartans at Templeton Center, while, at Spartanburg’s G.B. Hodge Center, Upstate delivered a crushing blow to the men’s team on a buzzer beater.

Led by Tilda Sjokvist, who scored 14 points and added three steals and three assists, the Blue Hose won their fifth game in a row with a 47-43 victory that elevated PC above .500 in conference play.

Presbyterian (17-13, 8-7 BSC) survived a frantic final minute.

“I thought we had a really great start to the game, [and] we executed offensively in the fourth quarter to pick up a lead that we really needed,” PC head coach Alaura Sharp stated. “It was a slugfest, and thatt’s kind of how Upstate makes people play. We held them to 43 points and a single-digit quarter.”

That quarter was the fourth, in which the Blue Hose outscored Upstate (15-14, 10-6), 13-8.
PC started strong, scoring eight of the first 10 points and led 17-10 at the end of the first quarter and 27-23 at halftime.

The Spartans hit a three-point shot with 30 seconds left on the clock to take their first lead of the night, ending the third quarter up, 35-34. 
Bryanna Brady made a contested layup to give the Blue and Garnet a two-point lead with 1:24 left in the fourth quarter. With PC’s lead remaining at 45-43, Upstate called a timeout with 9.7 seconds left with possession of the ball on its end of the court. A charge called on the Spartans gave PC possession and forced Upstate to foul. Brady sank two crucial free throws to seal the outcome.

Brady scored 12 points with six rebounds and an assist. Mara Neira added 11 points, four rebounds, three steals and three assists.
Only Jeni Levin scored in double figures for the Spartans with 13 points. Isabell West grabbed nine rebounds but scored only two.

The Blue Hose conclude their regular season on Saturday with a game on the road against Charleston Southern at 2 p.m.

Take a look at the stats here.

USC Upstate’s Trae Broadnax scored at the buzzer to send the Blue Hose men home with a costly 74-72 setback.

Broadnax scored the game-winning basket on a driving layup.

Four players – Kory Mincy (17 points), Samage Teel (14), Marquis Barnett (11) and Trevon Reddish-Rhone (11) – scored in double figures, but the loss left the Blue Hose a half game ahead of the Spartans, who completed their regular season, at the bottom of the standings.

Reddish-Rhone added 10 rebounds to produce a “double double” for the first time this season and second of his Blue Hose career. Koby Stewart made five steals in a game in which both teams committed 12 turnovers.

Upstate, meanwhile, put five – Nick Alves (13), Jalen Breazeale (12), Justin Bailey (11), Broadnax (10) and Patrick Iriel (10) – in double figures.

It was Mincy who tied the score with a three-pointer with 10 seconds remaining.

Four Presbyterian players scored in double-figures but the Blue Hose (13-17, Big South: 5-10) lost to the USC Upstate Spartans (10-19, Big South: 5-11), 74-72, on a buzzer beater.

USC Upstate (10-19, 5-11) led for almost the entire first half and 39-30 at halftime.

Behind a three-point play from Reddish-Rhone and two free throws from Kaleb Scott, the Blue Hose scored the first five points of the half, cutting USC Upstate’s lead to four, 39-25. After a triple from Mincy with 9:46 on the clock, Presbyterian cut USC Upstate’s lead to 58-55.

Behind a three-point play from Reddish-Rhone and a three from Mincy, the Blue Hose tied the score at 61 with eight minutes left in the game. USC Upstate went back in front by three and PC tied the score at 64 after a three-point play from Kobe Stewart. USC Upstate scored five straight points taking a 69-64 at the 3:53 mark. Presbyterian scored eight of the next 11 points tying the score at 72 after another three from Mincy.

Presbyterian (13-17, 5-10) concludes the regular season at Templeton Center against Charleston Southern on Saturday at 2 p.m. After the game, the Blue Hose will honor seniors Reddish-Rhone and Crosby James.            

Take a look at the stats here.

Gabby Gardner is a young woman of relentless good cheer. It’s natural that she likes it.

The Clinton High School senior signed a letter of intent to join the cheerleading program at Newberry College next fall. She wants to become a teacher, following in the footsteps of her mother, and plans to major in elementary education while cheering for the Wolves in football and basketball.

Recruiting cheerleaders doesn’t follow the standard procedures. It was as much a matter of Gardner recruiting Newberry as vice-versa. She sent video of her competitive performances to the nearby school, and it responded by figuratively mimicking Drew Carey and inviting her to “come on down!’

The University of Georgia kept its unbeaten baseball record by the narrowest of margins, edging Presbyterian, 4-3, on Tuesday in Athens.

Charlie Condon’s bases-loaded walk with two out in the bottom of the eighth gave the Bulldogs the lead after the Blue Hose tied it on shortstop Brody Fahr’s one-out homer in the top half.

Brian Zeldin earned his first save by retiring Presbyterian (5-4) in order in the ninth. The previous Georgia (8-0) reliever, Zach Harris (1-0), earned the decision by pitching 2/3 of the eighth inning.

Center fielder Joel Dragoo belted his sixth homer of the young season. Fahr, Dragoo, second baseman Jack Gorman and left fielder Noah Lebron collected the four PC hits. Lebron’s was a double.

Condon homered for the Bulldogs. He and Paul Toetz, who tripled, each had two hits.

Brooks Chamberlin (0-1), the ninth of 10 Presbyterian pitchers, took the loss. PC’s first four pitchers toiled an inning apiece.

Saint Bonaventure visits for four games, opening with a 4 p.m. game at Elton Pollock Field on Thursday.

Take a look at the box here.

Two Laurens Raiders, Noah Mosley and Vija Austin, are playing football at the next level come the fall.

Mosley signed a letter of intent at Newberry, and Austin is matriculating at Johnson C. Smith in Charlotte.

Riverside, a rival of Laurens in Region 2-4A, is sending both its basketball teams to the Class 4A state championship games on Saturday in Florence.

The Warriors defeated yet another Region 2 team, Greer, by a 58-48 score in the boys’ game.

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