WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Junior guard Taniyah Thompson scored a career-high 31 points and added six rebounds as East Carolina earned its first road victory of the season with a 79-50 decision over UNCW in non-conference women's basketball action at Trask Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.
 
The Pirates, who won for the first time in six road contests this season, moved their record to 6-6 while the Seahawks dropped to 2-7 on the year following their second loss in a row.
 
Thompson authored the first 30-point game of her career after knocking 13-of-19 field goal attempts, including a 3-for-6 effort from three-point range. She scored 17 of her points in the first half as East Carolina surged to a 46-22 lead over the Seahawks.
 
Graduate student guard Da'Ja Green added 12 points with five assists, while graduate student guard Raven Johnson came off the bench to score 11 points with a team-high eight rebounds.
 
UNCW, playing its first home game since Nov. 27, was led by redshirt senior forward Micah Hoggatt. The Conyers, Ga., product just missed her first career double-double with nine points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
 
Senior guard Carrie Gross anchored three Seahawks in double figures with 13 points, while graduate student guard Sierra DaCosta and sophomore guard Evan Miller chipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Key Moment: Led by 15 points from Thompson, the Pirates sprinted to a 22-6 advantage in the game's opening nine minutes. Thompson connected on 6-of-7 shots from the floor in the opening frame, including all three of her attempts from long range.
 
Game Notes:

• East Carolina leads the all-time series by a 33-25 margin … The Pirates and Seahawks met for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign when UNCW claimed a 71-68 victory in Greenville.
• Hoggatt's 11 rebounds are the most by a UNCW player this season, eclipsing the 10 boards by Miller at Winthrop on Dec. 1.
• Graduate student guard Allie Best paced UNCW with five assists.
• Gross had her streak of 16 consecutive made free throws snapped when she missed a foul shot with 8:07 left in the third quarter … It was just her second missed free throw of the season.
• UNCW employed its fourth different starting lineup of the season as Best made her second start of the year … DaCosta is the only UNCW player to start all nine games.  
• DaCosta has reached double figures in scoring in five consecutive games.

Up Next: UNCW begins a four-game road swing on Wednesday, Dec. 22, when the Seahawks venture up Interstate 40 for a 2 p.m. contest against UNCG inside Fleming Gymnasium.  

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