Women's Basketball Uses Strong Second Half to Beat Bluefield
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bluefield (VA) (4-22, 4-17) | 10 | 14 | 11 | 22 | 57 |
|
Tennessee Wesleyan (11-11, 9-11) | 23 | 8 | 23 | 21 | 75 |
ATHENS, Tenn.- The women's basketball team were back in action in James L. Robb Gymnasium on Saturday. The team hosted the Bluefield University Lady Rams in an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) contest.
Tennnessee Wesleyan came out on fire in the first quarter, holding a 16-5 advantage a little over the midway point of the quarter. Jacelyn Stone and Anna Crowder combined to help the team score the first 14 points in their lead while Abbey Barr added the 16th point of the contest with 4:11 remaining in the first. After a Barr three-pointer, Alexis Bates and Crowder scored to give the team a 23-10 lead at the first quarter break.
The offense cooled down in the second quarter as the team only scored eight points. Stone made the first basket of the quarter and Mikalee Martin moved the score to 27-15. Jaci Powell's three-pointer with 2:46 until halftime made the lead double digits again, making the scoreboard read 31-21. The half ended with the Lady Bulldogs leading 31-24 though.
Out of the halftime break, Bluefield cut the lead down to four points. Cambree Mayo, Crowder and Powell moved the team back ahead by double digits with their baskets giving the team a 42-32 lead. The offense kept compiling points as Bates and Ashley Baxter added to the team's total, and back-to-back three-point jumpers by Bates and Powell along with a layup by Stone helped the team take a 54-35 lead into the fourth quarter.
The opponents opened the fourth quarter on a 11-3 run, cutting the TWU lead down to 11 points with 6:11 remaining in the game. Mayo, Crowder, and Bates combined to score 12 of the next 15 points, with Bates three-pointer at the end of the run giving the team their largest lead of the game of 20 points, a 69-49 score, with 2:56 remaining. Courtney Farr and Aubrey Long got in on the scoring action, helping the team win the game 75-57.
Stone led the offense with 16 points while Crowder (15), Bates (15), and Powell (11) also finished with double figures. Crowder also pulled down nine rebounds.
The next game for the Lady Bulldogs (11-11, 9-11 AAC) will be their final road game of the regular season. The team will travel to play the University of Pikeville on Wednesday. The game is set to begin at 5:30 p.m.