CULLOWHEE, N.C. — Western Carolina women’s basketball spent Sunday afternoon making life miserable for Johnson University, pairing a hot hand from beyond the arc with relentless ball pressure to run away from the Royals, 89-47, at the Ramsey Center. The Catamounts (3-0) swiped 14 steals, forced 24 turnovers, and stretched their lead to as many as 44 points in front of 421 fans.
The result was rarely in question. After winning the opening tip, graduate transfer Kate Hollifield finished a layup on the game’s first possession, and WCU was up 10-0 within two minutes. Her sister, Ally Hollifield, drained a 26-footer; Kate added a triple of her own, and My’Asia Young turned a steal into an easy bucket that sent Johnson to its bench for a timeout. The Royals did not score until Megan Biliter’s tip-in with 8:02 left in the period.
By the first horn, WCU led 33-11. Kate Hollifield’s 25-footer with 47 seconds remaining pushed the margin to 25, and the Catamounts took a 51-25 advantage to the break.
Hollifield, who arrived from UNC Wilmington this spring, paced everyone with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 5-of-9 from deep. Two of those threes came in the fourth quarter, just 87 seconds apart, and both were set up by Ally.
Tina Bowers orchestrated much of the damage. The sophomore guard finished with 15 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals, and every one of her assists led to a three-pointer: two for Finley Van Bree, and one apiece for Kate Hollifield, Ally Hollifield and Ava Jarrett. Van Bree, a junior guard, matched her workload with 16 points and seven boards, while Young added 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Five of Young’s six rebounds came on the offensive glass, giving WCU extra chances all afternoon.
As a team, the Catamounts shot 48.4 percent overall and 46.2 percent from three (12-of-26), and 17 of their 30 field goals came off assists. Justice Zimmerman, a starter, scored just two points but dished four assists without a single turnover.
The defensive numbers were even louder. Johnson shot 15-of-53 (28.3 percent) and went 5-of-22 from beyond the arc, scoring only eight points in a third quarter that saw WCU extend the lead to 37. Bowers and Kate Hollifield each collected three steals, and the Royals’ guards struggled to find any rhythm: Kali Fisher and Saylor Hutcheson committed four turnovers apiece, and Charlie Roby added three.
Ellie Butler led Johnson with 11 points and two steals. Biliter was a bright spot on the glass, grabbing a game-high nine rebounds, though the Royals were outrebounded 41-34 overall.q
The afternoon was not entirely clean for the hosts. WCU connected on only 17 of 26 free throws (65 percent), well below the 12-of-14 mark Johnson posted at the line, and Hannah Moss and Jarrett combined for seven of the team’s 11 giveaways. Still, those are minor quibbles for a group that has now opened the season with three straight home victories.
The start is a welcome change of pace for head coach Jonathan Tsipis, who is in his third year in Cullowhee and is working to turn the program around after a 3-26 finish a season ago. Sunday’s game also gave the bench a long look, with Ava Jarrett contributing five points, four rebounds and two assists, and sophomore Ellie Fyans adding a free throw late in the fourth quarter.
Western Carolina now hits the road for the first time this season, traveling to UNC Asheville on Thursday, Nov. 12, for a 6:30 p.m. tip at Kimmel Arena in a battle of mountain neighbors. The Catamounts return to the Ramsey Center on Sunday, Nov. 15, to host Virginia University of Lynchburg at 2 p.m.
