The Virginia Wesleyan women's basketball team (5-14, 1-11 ODAC) fell to the Royals of Eastern Mennonite University in an evenly matched contest, losing 68-64.
Keagan Schwab led the Marlins with 18 points, shooting 8-for-18 from the field, 1-for-5 from three-point territory, and 1-for-2 from the free-throw line; she had five assists and one steal as well.
Brianna Long tallied 14 points as she shot 5-for-10 from the field and 4-for-7 from the free throw line; Long recorded seven rebounds and two steals. Also a key contributor was
Maesyn Blaylock, who registered 11 points; she went 5-for-7 from the field, 1-for-2 from beyond the arc, and made three rebounds and two steals.
The Royals started the game with a convincing 5-0 run, but
Bre Robinson claimed the first basket for the Marlins with 7:17 on the clock to bring the score to 5-2. The Royals continued to outscore the Marlins, gaining a 13-6 lead with 4:18 remaining in the first quarter, but the Marlins quickly reversed the momentum, creating a 14-0 scoring run to lead the Royals 20-13 with 18 seconds remaining. The final bucket of the quarter was made by EMU to reduce the scoring deficit to four before the start of the second quarter.
Brianna Long started the second quarter with a layup for the Marlins to extend their lead to 22-16. After nearly three minutes of scoreless play, the Royals fought back and tied the game at 26-26 with 4:50 on the clock and went on to claim their first lead since the first half of 30-28 with 3:09 on the clock. In the final minutes of second quarter play,
Mia Alexander put forward a strong showing for the Marlins, making two straight jumpers to reclaim the VWU lead with a score of 33-30 approaching halftime.
The Marlins came out strong after the break, outscoring EMU 7-2 to earn a 40-32 lead with 7:33 on the clock. EMU managed to score four points in a row to shrink the VWU lead to 40-36. The Marlins responded with a 5-1 run to extend their lead once again to eight with 3:49 on the clock. The visiting team maintained their advantage, entering the final quarter of play with a 51-44 lead.
Eastern Mennonite began the fourth quarter with a 10-4 scoring run to tie the game for the first time since the second quarter at 55-55 with 5:55 left in play. Within the next 25 seconds, the Royals inched ahead of the Marlins by two points. After nearly two and a half minutes of scoreless play,
Maesyn Blaylock executed a layup to tie the game at 58-58 with 3:09 remaining. EMU responded with a three-pointer to lead 61-58. The game remained close until the very end, but VWU was unable to recover. The final score was 68-64.
Next the Marlins will face Roanoke College for their second clash this season on Saturday, February 8th, at 2 p.m. The contest will be played at home.
