In the only home game in Hayes Gymnasium this week, the North Greenville Trailblazers women's basketball faced the Tusculum University Pioneers in an action-packed non-conference game.

The game started out hot, with the Trailblazers opening the scoring in the first 30 seconds of the first quarter. However, the Pioneers quickly retaliated, matching the score 34 seconds later. The Pioneers continued to surge ahead, ending the first quarter with a score of 22-19. The second quarter was a back-and-forth dog fight, with the final score being in favor of the Pioneers, 43-42. Throughout the last half, the Trailblazers tried hard to keep the Pioneers within reach. In the third quarter, the Pioneers increased their lead 69-58 and ultimately turned on the offensive jets in the last quarter to take the win 92-75.

Top performers for the Trailblazers included Amaijah Smith, who led with 15 points and eight assists, as well as contributing two steals. Abi Oates also had a spectacular performance, adding 12 points to the scoreboard for the Trailblazers. Austin Johnson led the Trailblazers with seven rebounds to help them gain possession of the ball.

From head coach Kelvin Long Jr.:

"Tonight, defensively we just didn't have it. We gave up 43 points in the first half and another 49 points in the second half. They [Tusculum] scored 92 points and you're not going to win very many ball games giving up 92 points. So, we're going to go back to the drawing board and get back to working on our defense. I saw some good things, we fouled too much, but it's really our defense, not the offense because we scored 75 points. Typically, 75 points will get you in some ball games, but not when you're up against 92 points. We're going back to the basics and back to the drawing board."

Next, the Trailblazers are taking a road trip to Mars Hill University in Mars Hill, North Carolina on Saturday, November 16th.