WILSON, N.C. - Allie Downing scored 14 points and pulled down 11 rebounds as the Belmont Abbey women's basketball team earned a hard-fought 79-74 win at regionally #3-ranked Barton College this evening.  The victory puts The Abbey 5-3 on the season, and 2-0 in Conference Carolinas play.  The Bulldogs are now 8-1 overall, with a 1-1 conference record.

How it Happened

• The Crusaders trailed throughout the first, but 11 points by Kuhlman kept the team close, 21-16 at the end of the period
• Defense was the story of the second, with each team scoring 12 points in the quarter.  Eight of those Crusader points came from Kuhlman.  Barton led 33-28 at halftime
• Trailing 47-42, Kuhlman made a 3-pointer, stole a Barton pass, and made a layup in an 18-second span to tie the game at 47
• From there, the offensive rebounding as well as the defensive play by Allie Downing helped Belmont Abbey get a 55-54 lead late in the third.  The Bulldogs led 56-55 heading into the final quarter
• Two free throws by Keyanna Spivey and five points by Downing in a span of 1:17 helped the Crusaders to a 64-61 advantage
• The teams went back and forth over the last four minutes of the game, but the Abbey's defense and free throw conversions got the Crusaders the 79-74 win
• Downing posted her fourth double-double of the season
• Kuhlman scored a season-high 29 points

Up Next

Belmont Abbey will welcome North Greenville University on Friday, December 7 for a 5:30 p.m. game.