SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Freshman Paulina Zaveckaite (Telsiai, Lithuania) snagged a Division I era school record with 22 rebounds as the USC Upstate women's basketball team (9-20, 8-10 A-Sun) stunned Atlantic Sun Conference foe Stetson (21-9, 12-6 A-Sun) 81-68 today inside the Hodge Center.

The contest was knotted up at 28-28 at the half, but the Spartans came out strong in the second stanza. Upstate outscored the Hatters 53-40 in the second frame to earn the 81-68 win. This was the first time the Spartans have reached the 80-point mark since dropping a 94-81 decision against Norfolk State Nov. 21, 2011.

Upstate was led by junior Tee'Ara Copney (Asheville, N.C.) with 22 points. She also grabbed seven boards, handed out two assists and swiped a game-high three steals.

Zaveckaite posted a career-high 16 points for the second time this season for the Spartans. The Lithuanian Center's double-double of 16 points and 22 rebounds is her fifth double-double of the season. Her 22 boards set a single-game school record since joining Division I five years ago. The previous D-I era record was 20 rebounds, which was set by Ebony Johnson Dec. 31, 2007 and Chelsea McMillian Nov. 12, 2010.

Freshman Briana Robinson (Columbia, S.C.) tallied 15 points for the Upstate offense, marking her ninth double-digit scoring effort this year. Junior Hannah Ohl (Danville, Ill.) rounded out the double-figures for the Spartans with 10 points. She also grabbed three rebounds and two steals. Junior Tyra Smith (Lawrenceville, Ga.) dished out a game-high six assists to go along with six points.

The Hatters were led by a trio of double-digit scorers as Sasha Sims led the way with 14 points. Victoria McGowan and Jazmin Garcia each registered 11 points for Stetson. Cherisse Burris and McGowan both recorded a team-high six rebounds, while McGowan had a team-best four assists.

Upstate won the contest at the line, shooting 80.0 percent from the charity stripe. The Spartans connected on 20-of-25 free throw attempts as Robinson (5-for-5), Copney (4-for-4) and Smith (4-for-4) were all perfect from the line. Zaveckaite went 6-for-8 from the foul line.

Stetson shot 68.8 percent from the line (11-for-16), while shooting 43.9 percent from the floor and 46.7 percent from behind the arc. The Spartans shot 43.1 percent from the floor and 26.3 percent from long distance.

The win today secured the No. 7 seed for the Spartans in the A-Sun Championship hosted by Mercer. Upstate will face No. 2 seed Stetson again Wednesday, Feb. 29 at 6 p.m. in Macon, Ga. Follow the Spartans this season on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.