ECU Women Roll Past Gardner-Webb, 87-59
January 06, 2003 | Women's Basketball
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- East Carolina's women's basketball team built a 20-point halftime lead and cruised to an 87-59 non-conference win over visiting Gardner-Webb on Monday night at Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. It was the Pirates' sixth win in their last seven outings.
Jennifer Jackson scored 21 points and Courtney Willis netted 20 to lead ECU, which improved to 7-5. Jackson and Tali Robich had a game-high nine rebounds each.
"She [Jackson] is very athletic, and I knew she would be a big part of our team," said ECU head coach Sharon Baldwin. "She is so explosive and she comes up with some big rebounds late in the game."
The Pirates begin Conference USA play on Friday night at Charlotte (7 p.m.).
Ten of the 11 Pirates that played in the game scored and ECU forced 28 Bulldog turnovers.
East Carolina started the scoring just six seconds into the game on lay-ups by Jennifer Jackson and Shanita Sutton, and the women were soon up by 10 points. GWU brought the point deficit to just nine on a free throw by Brooke Wilkinson, but that would be as close as the Bulldogs would come to the lead. ECU went on a 20-9 scoring run to take a 44-24 lead at the half.
East Carolina came out big in the beginning of the second half, increasing its lead to 23 before Gardner-Webb cut the margin to 12. The Pirates would rally back on a three-point basket by Ayana McWilliams. McWilliams would score the next three points as well on a lay-up and a free throw, to put ECU up by 18. Gardner-Webb tried unsuccessfully to chip away at the ECU lead, and the Pirates would close out the game with a 28 point win, 87-59.
Sutton also ended the evening in double-figured scoring with 12 points, marking the ninth time this season that three or more players have posted double-figures for the Pirates.
Guard Casey Collins led Gardner-Webb with 18 points.
East Carolina outrebounded the Bulldogs 47-30 and shot 46.5 percent from the field and an impressive 93.8 percent from the free throw line (15-16).
