Lynchburg. Va- Wednesday's night contest between the Randolph and Bridgewater women's basketball teams was the first ODAC matchup for both teams, who both entered tonight undefeated. In a game that was mostly back and forth the Wildcats were bested in the second half as they fell to the Eagles 59-50.
In the first quarter, the Wildcats quickly jumped out to a 5-0 lead. Both teams continued to trade baskets, the Eagles were able to go on a small run, taking a 10-7 lead with 4:28 remaining in the 1st quarter. Both teams continued to go back and forth for the The remainder of the quarter, which ended 14-13 in favor of the Eagles. The first quarter alone saw a combined six lead changes.
The Eagles were able to push the lead to six early in the 2nd quarter, making the score 19-13 with 7:47 remaining. Both defenses were then able to dominate for the majority of the second quarter, causing a combined 15 turnovers for each team. The Eagles were then able to go on another small 5-0 run, pushing the lead to 26-17 with 1:25 remaining in the first half. After a Wildcat free throw, Bridgewater held a 26-18 lead going into halftime.
After the break, the Eagles once again were able to go on a small run making the lead 30-18 with 8:36 remaining in the 3rd. The Wildcats closed the lead to eight with just under four minutes having gone by in the 3rd. Another Bridgewater run was able to push the lead up to 13 points 40-27.
The 4th quarter started with both teams trading baskets for the first three minutes. With the Eagle lead sitting at 49-33 with 6:56 remaining in the quarter, the Wildcats were able to go on a 9-0 run, closing the lead to 49-42 with 5:23 remaining. The Eagles were not able to hit a shot from the field, giving the Wildcats a big opportunity to close the gap. Randolph was able to get within five points, 53-48, with 1:39 remaining. Each team had consistency from the charity stripe, helping the Eagles keep their lead until the end of the game. The Wildcats outscored the Eagles 23-19 in the final frame but they just fell short of the comeback with the game ending 59-50 with the Eagles taking the win.
"Bridgewater did a nice job defensively and forced us to get out of rhythm especially in the second & third quarters, said head coach
Steve Lanpher. "I thought we force opportunities too early in the shot clock & were too impatient. Defensively we did a nice job overall limiting them but didn't finish possessions off & gave them too many second shot opportunities. In addition, we hurt ourselves by fouling late in the shot clock that gave them extra possessions."
Teniyah Crenshaw-Patterson (Newport News, Va./Heritage) led the Wildcats in scoring with 15 points, followed by
Kylie Stark (Lynchburg, Va./Brookville) with 10.
Yanessa Cabrera (Manassas, Va./Stonewall Jackson) finished with six points, three assists and three steals.
"I was encouraged by our fight as we didn't quit and battled back to within six points with the ball a couple times in the fourth," noted Lanpher. "We'll learn from this setback & hopefully become a stronger team because of it."
The Wildcats will move to their second game of a three game home stretch, taking on Carolina University this Saturday. Game time will be at 2:00 p.m.
