Box Score SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Queens University of Charlotte's Shonice Pettaway (Walstonburg, N.C., Greene Central) led the Royals to victory this afternoon at Converse College recording 21 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double in a row. The Royals defeated the Valkyries 57-43, improving their record to 4-1 in Conference Carolinas, and 6-3 overall. Converse drops to 0-9.
 
Pettaway shot 8-of-14 en route to collecting her point total. The junior forward also led the Royals with four steals on the defensive end. Freshman guard Nikia Squire (Columbia, S.C., Ridge View) recorded nine points, six rebounds and five assists in the win, while Sarah Myatt (Show Camp, N.C., Southern Alamance) pulled down seven rebounds.
 
Queens jumped on the Valkyries early, going up by as much as 18 on a few occasions thanks to Pettaway's 16 first half points. However, Converse was able to close the half outscoring the Royals 8-2, cutting Queens' lead to 10, 32-22, at the break.
 
The Royals' offensive struggles continued into the second half where they shot just 26.9-percent from the floor compared to their 40-percent first half performance. However, Queens would still hold on to their lead, expanding it to as much as 20 in the second as the Valkyries shot just 28.4-percent from the floor on the day.
 
Converse was led by Kayla Garrett, who scored 12 points.
 
The Royals will travel to Mount Olive on January 9 for their next game. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.