Hickory, N.C.----The Limestone College Saints used a 16-3 run in the early stages of the second half and made it stick, defeating Wingate University 78-64 Saturday night in Shuford Gymnasium. The matchup was part of the South Atlantic Conference/Conference Carolinas Tip-Off Classic, hosted by Lenoir-Rhyne University. The Limestone victory, coupled with the Queens win over Lenoir-Rhyne gives all four teams a 1-1 record in the classic.

Sophomore guard Paidrick Matilus (Boynton Beach, Fla.) led Wingate (1-2) with 18 points on six-of-10 shooting. Classmate Quan Alexander (Charlotte, N.C.) joined Matilus in double figures with 11 points. Redshirt freshman Mike Tankersley (Hampton, Ga.) pulled down a game-high nine rebounds, with five coming on the offensive glass.

Redshirt-junior forward Jarrell Douglas (Leesburg, Fla.) exploded for a game-high 26 points off the bench. Junior guard Stewart Clark (Atlanta, Ga.) added 18 points for the Saints (1-1). Redshirt senior Danny Friend (Morrow, Ga.) narrowly missed a double-double as he scored nine points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.

Limestone used a 10-2 run to take an eight point lead at the midway point of the first half. Wingate responded, tying the game at 25 on a Tankersley layup. Clark would add a jumper, followed by two Wingate misses, giving the Saints a 27-25 halftime lead.

An Alexander layup knotted the score at 32 two minutes into the second period but the Saints made their game-changing run. Douglas had nine points in the flurry, while the Bulldogs turned it over three times. Wingate would get within 11 at the 11:47 mark thanks to a Turner bucket, but Limestone came right back with five straight points to extend the lead back to 16. The Saints led by as many 19 down the stretch.

Wingate shot 38.1 percent (24-63) from the field, including five-of-20 from beyond the arc. Limestone shot a blistering 63 percent in the second half, finishing the game at 55.1 percent. The Bulldogs were outrebounded 37-30 on the night.

Wingate will be back in action Friday in the Ortho Carolina Classic. The ‘Dogs host Coker at 4 p.m. in the home opener in Cuddy Arena. Shaw University and Francis University will get the classic started at 2 p.m. Limestone has a week off before hosting Brevard next Saturday at 4 p.m.