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KENNESAW, Ga. – With ice water in her veins, junior Karly Frye buried a three-pointer with 10 seconds left in regulation to propel the Kennesaw State women's basketball to a 50-47 win over Gardner-Webb on Saturday (Dec. 20) afternoon at the KSU Convocation Center.
 
It was the sixth-straight win for the Owls, who improve to 9-2 on the season, the best start to a season since the 2000-01 campaign.
 
"It was a grind-it-out, smash mouth game," said head coach Nitra Perry. "That was by far the biggest team we have played, but not just big in every position, but they were very agile at every position. We were not getting the same looks that we have gotten all year. I am proud that the players adjusted as the game went on and matched their intensity."
 
"I was not shocked it was Karly Frye taking the shot, because she is very confident. Her confidence is what kind of fuels the team, along with Kristina Wells's energetic leadership. When she put it up, I thought it was going in. We knew we were going for the first great shot. They knew I was not going to call a timeout and that make or miss we were going to go get a shot and she was making eye contact with me in the huddle. I knew she believed and that is really what this team has been about, believing that we can win."
 
Sophomore Deandrea Sawyers led all scorers with 18 points for the Owls, while senior Kristina Wells poured in 15 points on 7-of-13 shooting and nine rebounds. Junior Jasmine McAllister added her Atlantic Sun Conference-leading eighth double-double of the season with 10 points and a season-high 16 rebounds.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs (4-7) came out hot from behind the arc as GWU made two of its four three-pointers in the game in the opening minutes of the game to build a 7-0 lead over the Owls.
 
McAllister would get the Owls on the board at the 16:15 mark of the half as the Owls locked down on defense to start a 11-4 run, capped by a Wells fast break layup to take its first lead of the game at 13-12.
 
The two teams traded baskets over the next several minutes, before the Bulldogs jumped out to a 23-19 lead with two minutes left in the half. Back-to-back layups from Wells and Sawyers then sent the game into a 23-23 tie at intermission.
 
The back-and-forth action continued out of the break as the game saw eight ties and nine lead changes in the second half. GWU opened the period with four-straight points, but the Owls responded with a 10-2 run over the five minutes to take a 33-29 advantage with 14:04 left on the clock.
 
GWU battled back to even the contest at 34-34 at the 10:42 minute mark as the two teams traded the lead with neither team going ahead by more than two points until the final minute of the game.
 
With the Owls holding onto a slim 46-45 lead after a pair of free-throws from Sawyers with 37 seconds to go, the Bulldogs came down the court and earned a set of free-throws for themselves as Candace Brown converted the pair to take a 47-46 advantage with 22 seconds left to go.
 
After receiving the ball from McAllister on the inbounds, Frye dribbled at pace down the court, before finding herself wide open and drilling the trey to put the Owls up, 49-47 with 10 seconds remaining on the clock.
 
The Bulldogs then missed their last chance layup, with Wells grabbing the ball and connecting on one-of-two free throws to give KSU the 50-47 victory.
 
As a team, the Owls connected on 20-of-64 shots for a 31.3 field goal percentage and outrebounded the Bulldogs, 46-39, with sophomore Aareon Smith pulling down five boards for KSU.
 
Frye, whose only points came on her late three-pointer, dished out a team-high four assists.
 
Olivia Parker led the Bulldogs with 11 points and 11 rebounds in the setback.
 
The Owls have a quick turnaround when they welcome in Xavier to the KSU Convocation Center on Monday, Dec. 22 at 12 p.m. ET in the team's final game before the holiday break.
 
To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State women's basketball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsWBB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.