Presbyterian earns first March Madness win in First Four: No. 1 South Carolina up next
Presbyterian not only made its first-ever appearance in the women's NCAA Tournament on Wednesday, but the Blue Hose also earned their first tournament win.
The Blue Hose defeated the Sacred Heart Pioneers, 49-42, in a wire-to-wire victory in Wednesday's First Four matchup. Presbyterian College, the smallest D1 school in the nation with an enrollment of less than 1,000 undergraduates, is 19-0 this season when holding its opponents to under 60 points. With the win, Presbyterian secured a first-round matchup with the No. 1 overall seed South Carolina.
The First Four game was held at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina — home of the undefeated Gamecocks — but it felt like a home game for the Blue Hose. Presbyterian is located in Clinton, South Carolina, about an hour away from Columbia and their fans made the drive to watch the Blue Hose make program history. Expect them to show up again on Friday.
South Carolina and head coach Dawn Staley were also on hand to watch. The Gamecocks will be without star center Kamilla Cardoso in their first-round game after she was ejected for fighting in South Carolina’s SEC tournament title win over LSU.
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Here's what you need to know about South Carolina's first-round March Madness opponent:
Presbyterian takes down Sacred Heart
Presbyterian held Sacred Heart to only 17 points in the first half. The Pioneers shot 22.3% from the field and 2-for-13 from three in the first half, while the Blue Hose shot 52.4% from the field and were 1-for-6 from three to take a 29-17 halftime lead.
The Blue Hose led by as many as 14 points, but the Pioneers stepped it up coming out of the locker room and went on a 9-0 run in the third quarter to come as close as three points of Presbyterian. Sacred Heart's defense held Presbyterian to six points in the third quarter and forced nine turnovers in the second half, but Presbyterian survived a late run to win 49-42.
Blue Hose guard Mara Neira has a team-high 14 points, six rebounds and two assists, while Big South second-Team All-Conference center Bryanna Brady added 12 points, five rebounds and one block. Presbyterian finished shooting 40% from the field and only 1-for-11 from three.
Sacred Heart Guard Ny’Ceara Pryor, Northeast Conference's back-to-back player of the year, led the Pioneers with 12 points, seven steals and six rebounds, while guard Sierra Johnson added 10 points, five rebounds and one assist. Her team shot 25.4% from the field and 3-for-23 from three.
Who will Presbyterian face next in March Madness?
The Blue Hose will take on South Carolina, the No. 1 overall seed in the women's NCAA Tournament, on Friday at 2 p.m. on ESPN. Presbyterian and South Carolina faced off earlier this season in December, with the Gamecocks dominating the Blue Hose, 99-29. The winner will advance to the second round of the Regional 1 Albany bracket to take on the winner of No. 8 North Carolina and No. 9 Michigan State.
When did Presbyterian last make NCAA women's tournament?
Presbyterian's First Four matchup win not only marks the Blue Hose's first March Madness appearance in school history, but the team's first NCAA women's tournament win.