VIRGINIA BEACH -- Miley Cyrus might sing about a wrecking ball, but junior Andrea Paphites and sophomore Kelly Jones became a wrecking ball for Virginia Wesleyan College in the Marlins' impressive 80-72 victory over Salisbury University.

Playing before an appreciative crowd at the Jane P. Batten Student Center, Paphites (Virginia Beach/Princes Anne) and Jones (Ellicott City, Md./Mt. Hebron) both recorded career-high scoring totals in a focused Marlin attack.  Paphites put through 25 points and Jones backed her with 24 as Virginia Wesleyan (2-1) grabbed the lead with about nine minutes to go in the first half and led the rest of the way.

Virginia Wesleyan, playing without two starters out with injuries, pulled together to find open players for big shots from start to finish.  The Marlins recorded 19 assists on 25 field goals made, including 13 triples ... one shy of the program record 14 set last year.

Paphites and Jones both hit eight field goals, with Paphites' line including three triples and a 6-of-7 showing from the free throw lines.  Jones provided a clinic in long-range shooting, nailing 7-of-10 attempts, tying the second highest single-game total of triples made in program history.  She was one shy of the program record of eight set by Jill Weston in 2008 against Salisbury.

Nine Marlins played and nine scored, including junior Kerri Taylor (Stockport, England/The Hill School, Pa.), who netted 12 points.  Sophomore Cassie Conley (New Market/Stonewall Jackson) added seven points and led VWC rebounding with 10.  Junior Brittany Glasco (Fredericksburg/Massaponax) and Paphites dished out five assists each. Paphites also blocked a pair of shots.

Salisbury (1-2) forged in front several times in the early minutes, but could not hold off Virginia Wesleyan after Jones drilled through a triple, off a Taylor assist, with 8:46 remaining in the first half.  It sparked a 12-3 VWC run, which was capped by a Paphites triple off another Taylor assist. 

VWC hit five consecutive triples, including four by Jones, in the closing minutes of the first half. Rookie Alexis Platt (Virginia Beach/Princess Anne) capped VWC scoring with a jumper and the Marlins led 41-32 at the break.

Salisbury fell behind 45-32 early in the second half, but staged a rally behind Courtney McManus (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East), Anna Hackett (Germantown, Md./Clarksburg), Sarah Seipp (Gaithersburg, Md./Gaithersburg), and Julia McLaughlin (Monkton, Md./Hereford) to close with a 47-45 score with 12:51 remaining to be played.

But, it ended there as Taylor connected on a timley triple, off a Glasco assist, sparking VWC on a 9-4 run to move out to a 56-49 lead with 9:07 on the clock. The Marlins used a 15-7 surge minutes later to put the game away, opening up a 74-62 lead following a Glasco layup with 2:14 remaining.

Hackett, the Capital Athletic Conference's Player of the Week last week, led Sea Gull scoring with 23 points, helped by an 11-of-11 showing from the free throw lines.  She launched 25 field goals and made six. Seipp finished with 16 points and McManus added 11. Melanie Mocniak (Annapolis, Md./St. Mary's) led SU rebounding with 12. Hackett also  recorded eight assists and five steals.

Virginia Wesleyan returns to competition on Sunday, Nov. 24, opening Old Dominion Athletic Conference competition in Emory, Va., against the Wasps of Emory & Henry College at 2 p.m.

--AMDG--