The Virginia Wesleyan University women's basketball team (1-1) fell to William Peace 56-53.
Mekayla Clarke led the Marlins offense with 13 points shooting 6-for-10 from the field, three rebounds, two steals, and two assists, Logan Carter scored nine points shooting 3-for-5 from the field, had two rebounds, and one assist, and Gabrielle Athy scored eight points, grabbed a team-high 14 rebounds, and three assists.
Keys to the Game:
- The Pacers had 20 points off turnovers compared to the Marlins' 11
- VWU had the advantage in second-chance points 10-7.
- William Peace had the advantage in points in the paint 32, compared to the Marlins' 20.
- Virginia Wesleyan had the lead for 25:19 minutes of the game.
How It Happened:
The Marlins jumped out to an early 8-1 lead over the Pacers in the first five minutes of the contest. However, William Peace went on an 8-0 run to take a 9-8 lead, but the Marlins countered with a 10-0 run to end the first quarter with an 18-9 lead.
William Peace came out in the second quarter scoring five unanswered points to cut the lead down to 18-14. The Marlins kept hold of a two possession lead until the 4:20 mark where they went on a 5-0 run to lead 30-18. The Pacers outscored VWU 8-1 to cut the lead down to 31-26 for halftime.
The Pacers kept their momentum from the second quarter and went on an 8-3 run to tie the game at 34-34. The teams traded points with the Marlins outscoring the Pacers 6-4 to lead 40-38. The Pacers went on a 3-0 run to end the third quarter with a 41-40 lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Pacers jumped out to a 45-41 lead, but the Marlins came back to cut the lead down to one. Back-to-back three-pointers for the Pacers gave them a 52-44 advantage midway through the final frame. VWU rallied to go on a 9-0 run over the next three and a half minutes to take a 53-52 lead with 1:23 left in the game.
With less than one minute in the game, the Marlins held a 53-52 lead until William Peace broke their four-minute scoreless drought with a layup to take a 54-53 lead. The Marlins were unable to make another bucket in the last 20 seconds of the game to fall 56-53.
