SPARTANBURG, S.C. – USC Upstate women's basketball secured its second straight conference win as it beat the Highlanders of Radford University 55-49 at home on Wednesday evening. Isabella Geraci led the Spartans as she tied her season-high of 17 points while Trinity Johnson had her third game scoring in double-figures.  

After six and a half scoreless minutes, Rebekah Gordon scored the first points of the game with a hook shot in the paint. Radford quickly responded with a driving layup to make the game 2-2. From there, Upstate went on a seven-point run to finish the first quarter leading 9-2. Gordon led the Spartans through the first quarter, going 2-3 for field goals and getting two rebounds while Cali Levine contributed three points.  

Radford was able to reel the game back within three points before Upstate posted another five points courtesy of AC Markham and Talia Roldan who extended the lead to eight points. A layup from Radford kept the Highlanders in the game but Roldan was quick to hit a three pointer which was then accompanied by a second chance layup from Gordon to make the score 19-8. Geraci made two free throws and followed them a three-pointer to conclude the Spartans' scoring for the first half and make the game 24-13. With five points in the quarter, Geraci was only outscored by Roldan who went 2-2 for three pointers. Gordon, Geraci and Johnson all posted two rebounds apiece as well.  

Coming out of the break, Radford posted four points in the first minute to bring the game back within single digits. The Spartans were able to extend the lead back to 10 with a three-pointer from Geraci and a floater in the paint by Johnson. While maintaining their lead, the Spartans were able to push their lead back to 14 points as they claimed the last five points of the third quarter. Both Johnson and Geraci went 2-2 for field goals with Johnson scoring an addition free throw for five points in the quarter while Geraci also went 2-2 for three pointers to earn six points in the third quarter.  

Despite reaching an 18-point lead, the Spartans had to continue to be aware on defense as the Highlanders kept their feet on the gas in hopes of a comeback win. Radford went on a 10-point run to make the game 45-35 with three minutes remaining. Roldan interrupted the run with a made free throw. With less than a minute left and the Spartans in the bonus, Markham (1-2), Gordon (2-2) and Johnson (2-2) all stepped up to the free-throw line to help keep the game just out of reach. Radford scored the final points of the game with a last minute three-pointer but it was Upstate that came out on top, winning 55-49. 

 
Game Information 
Score: USC Upstate 55; Radford 49 
Records: USC Upstate (5-8, 2-0 Big South) vs. Radford (5-9, 1-2 Big South)    
Location: G. B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C. 

How It Happened:  

First Quarter:  

• Rebekah Gordon got the first points on the board for USC Upstate with a hook shot.  

• Radford responded with a driving layup to make the game 2-2 with five minutes left in the quarter.  

• Cali Levine recorded her first points of the game as she knocked down a three-pointer to return the lead to Upstate. 

• Trinity Johnson contributed a driving layup to extend the lead to five points.  

•  Gordon finished the quarter with a layup to make the game 9-2 at the end of the first quarter.  

Second Quarter:  

• Radford started the second quarter by adding four points to the board to make the game within three points. 

• Upstate responded with five points courtesy of AC Markham and Talia Roldan to extend the Spartans' lead to eight points.  

• Following the media timeout, Radford scored a layup to chip at the Spartans' lead. 

• Roldan sank her second three-pointer in a row just before Gordon made a second chance layup to make the game 19-8 with just under three left in the half.  

• Isabella Geraci finished the half strong for Upstate, putting down five points to help carry the Spartans into the break 24-13. 

Third Quarter:  

• The Highlanders were able to cut the Spartans' lead down to seven coming out of halftime. 

• A three-point jump shot from Geraci and a floating jump shot from Johnson helped to keep the Spartans out in front by 10 points.  

• Another three and another floater from Geraci and Johnson extended Upstate's lead to 13 points to make the game 34-21 with just under three minutes left in the third quarter. 

• Radford was able to bring the game back within single digits with a layup and jump shot.  

• Upstate then went on a five-point run as AC Markham hit a layup as well as the and one while Johnson and Jeni Levine contributed one free throw each to make the game 39-25 going into the final 10 minutes.  

Fourth Quarter:  

• Geraci kept her momentum going with back-to-back three-pointers right out of the gate to give the Spartans an 18-point lead.  

• Raford then went on a 10-point run to bring the game back within single digits.  

• A made free throw from Roldan put a stop to the Highlanders' run and made the game 46-37 with three minutes left.  

• The Highlanders got the game back within five points with 1:18 left in the game.  

• Two free throws from Johnson and Gordon and one from Markham once again returned a double-digit lead to Upstate.  

• Johnson concluded the game for the Spartans with two made free throws just before Radford made one more jump shot to finish the game 55-49.  
     

Notable 

• Isabella Geraci was able to tie her season-high in points (17) which was originally set against Morehead State (12/12/22) 

• Geraci also surpassed her season-high for three pointers (2) with the five she posted against Radford, which was originally set against Charleston Southern (12/31/22) 

• Trinity Johnson set a new season-high for rebounds with the seven she recorded, surpassing the previous season-high of six she set against Montreat (12/14/22) 

• Talia Roldan set a new season-high for three-pointers with two tonight, replacing her previous high of one set against Charleston Southern (12/31/22) 

• AC Markham set a new season-high for free throws with the two she made tonight replacing her original high of one set against Montreat (12/14/22) 

• This is the first time since 2010 that Upstate has collected back-to-back conference wins to start conference play. In 2010, USC Upstate competed in the ASUN Conference where it beat ETSU (78-70) and Campbell (85-71) to start conference play with a 2-0 record  

Up Next for the Spartans 

Upstate will finish the week in High Point, N.C. to take on the Panthers of High Point University on Saturday, January 7th at 2:00 p.m.            

 
Connect with the Spartans 
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Twitter: @UpstateWBB 
Instagram: @upstatespartans 
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans 

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