Charleston Southern University’s women’s basketball team was defeated by Winthrop 63-54 on Saturday at the Winthrop Coliseum in Rock Hill, South Carolina. The Buccaneers now hold a record of 4-13 overall and 2-2 in conference play, while Winthrop improved to 10-8 overall and 3-1 in the Big South.
Tyonna Bailey led Charleston Southern with a standout performance, scoring a game-high 30 points and collecting a career-best 12 rebounds for her first double-double. Despite her efforts, Winthrop’s defense proved decisive with 15 steals and 23 points off turnovers.
Winthrop started strong, shooting 50 percent in the first quarter to establish a five-point lead. Charleston Southern struggled offensively early on, making only three of their ten shots in the opening period. The Eagles maintained their advantage through the second quarter, leading by five at halftime.
The third quarter saw Charleston Southern face further difficulties as they managed just four field goals out of eighteen attempts and scored nine points. Winthrop extended its lead to eleven points by the end of the period. In the fourth quarter, Charleston Southern showed improvement, outscoring Winthrop 19-17 with Bailey contributing most of those points. However, Winthrop maintained composure at the free-throw line to secure the win.
Other notable performances included Caelan Ellis with 11 points for Charleston Southern. For Winthrop, Amourie Porter scored 17 points, Madison Ruff added 15, and Cori Lard contributed 10.
Charleston Southern finished the game shooting nearly 34 percent from the field and about 28 percent from three-point range. The team committed 24 turnovers compared to eight assists. Winthrop shot almost 40 percent overall and converted on 75 percent of its free throws.
The key moment came during Charleston Southern’s cold stretch in the third quarter when Winthrop used a six-point scoring edge to push their lead into double digits.
Bailey reached double figures for the tenth time this season and set a new personal best in rebounds. Ellis recorded her thirteenth game in double digits for scoring. Senior Taylor Caldwell made her first start of the season.
Charleston Southern will continue conference play against UNC Asheville on Wednesday, January 14 at 6:30 p.m.
