NORFOLK, Va. -- The Washington and Lee women's basketball team overcame an 11-point, halftime deficit to defeat Virginia Wesleyan, 49-44, in ODAC action on Friday evening at the Batten Center.
After connecting on just 6-of-29 (20.7%) from the field and 4-of-8 (50.0%) from the foul line in the first half, the Generals (7-6, 5-4) entered the second half down, 27-16.
Virginia Wesleyan (3-8, 2-6) maintained its lead early in the second stanza, increasing its advantage to 35-22, with 14:06 left in the contest. The Marlins lead was destined to be short-lived however, as junior forward Emily Barker (Clifton, Va./Mount Vernon) hit a three-pointer at 12:56 and kicked off an eight minute, 11-0 run to pull the Generals to within two points (35-33) of the home team.
Virginia Wesleyan broke their scoreless streak at 5:26 with a layup from Michelle Dove, but W&L immediately responded as freshman forward Sarah Hunsinger (Mayer, Ariz./The Orme School) dropped in a layup at 5:16. Freshman guard Sarah Otey (Williamsburg, Va./Hampton-Roads) completed the comeback with another layup at 4:52, tying the game for the first time with the score locked at 37-37.
The Generals took the the lead for the first time in the game when junior guard Bethany Dannelly (Raleigh, N.C./William G. Enloe) scored a pair of foul shots at 3:39 (39-37). W&L increased its lead to six-points (45-39) with 2:10 remaining, but the Marlins fought back to within 45-44 with one minute to play. W&L was unable to convert on its next possession as a shot from senior forward Sarah Michaels (Norfolk, Va./Granby) missed the mark. A quick steal by Michael's, however, earned her both the ball and a trip to the charity stripe with nine seconds remaining.
The W&L senior converted both her looks from the line to increase the Generals' lead to 47-44. On the next Marlin possession, Dannelly swiped her own steal and earned a trip to the foul line with one second left. She scored both shots and put the game out of reach at 49-44.
Sophomore guard Louisa Feve (Bethesda, Md./Winston Churchill) led W&L with 13 points and a co-team-high nine rebounds. Michaels also grabbed nine boards while scoring 12 on the evening, while Hunsinger rounded out the Generals' double-digit scorers with 10 points.
Washington and Lee returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Lynchburg for a 3:00 p.m. game.
-- GENERALS --
