BREVARD, N.C. - Sophomore forward Olivia Miller scored a career-high 25 points, however, the Brevard College women's basketball team (4-2, 1-1 USA South) dropped its first home game of the season as the Tornados fell 71-59 to preseason USA South Conference favorites North Carolina Wesleyan (2-3, 2-0 USAS) on Thursday evening at the Boshamer Gymnasium. 
 
Miller, a second-year Tornado from Hudson, North Carolina, put up a career-best 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field and three made field goals, while also grabbing six rebounds and recording a block and a steal. The performance marked the second 20-plus point outing of her collegiate career. 
 
Senior forward Makenna Parkins put up 12 points, eight rebounds, and two blocks with a perfect 4-for-4 mark at the free throw line. Josie Hester added five points, seven boards, and a team-high five assists, and Makayla Street scored six points. 
 
NC Wesleyan was paced by Corynthian Williams, who posted 14 points and eight rebounds. Harmony Martin and Nadia Simmons each reached double figures with 10 points pieces, with Simmons stuffing the stat sheet adding five rebounds and a game-high eight assists. 
 
The Battling Bishops outshot the Tornados to 58% to 39% in the first half to establish a nine-point edge before the intermission. NC Wesleyan's bench outscored Brevard's 31-12, while BC held a 44-18 edge in the paint. The visitors made a total of eight 3-pointers, while the Tornados failed to make a 3-pointer throughout the contest. 
 
Brevard opened up the game with a 17-11 lead through the first seven minutes of action, but the Battling Bishops answered back tying the match up at 19 all at the end of the first quarter with a 8-2 scoring run to close the period out. 
 
With the score tied at 21 all in the second quarter, NC Wesleyan used a 7-0 run to take a 28-21 lead at the 6:43 mark. Then after Brevard battled back to cut the deficit down to two points with under two minutes to play in the first half, the visitors used an 8-1 scoring stretch to take a nine-point lead, 41-32, into the locker rooms. 
 
Brevard was able to cut the deficit back down to three points early in the third period, 43-40 following six points from Miller and a Parkins bucket, but the Battling Bishops did not surrender their edge, pushing the lead back out to 10 points at the end of the third. 
 
NC Wesleyan put the game on ice in the fourth, extending its lead up to as many as 16 points before wrapping up the 71-59 victory. 
 
The Tornados will look to bounce back on the road as Brevard travels to Winston-Salem, North Carolina to take on Salem College on Saturday at 2 p.m. 
 
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