LYNCHBURG, Va. – The seventh-ranked Washington and Lee women's basketball team outscored Lynchburg by a combined 37-12 in the first and third quarters to run away with a 66-47 win over the Hornets on Saturday afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Generals (4-0, 1-0 ODAC) opened the game by scoring the first 10 points on an overall 14-3 run in which they shot 5-of-9 from the floor. Sophomore
Riley Bryant scored a team-high eight points in the early going, while the Hornets struggled to find the bottom of the net (1-9 FG). W&L closed out the first by making four of their final six shots, including Bryant's third triple and 11th point of the quarter to take a 23-9 lead into the second.
W&L grew its lead to as large as 17 points in the second quarter, before a 14-5 Lynchburg run gave the Hornets life nearing halftime. The Generals countered, however, with a bucket from junior
Mary Schleusner and a free throw from senior
Lauren Achter to start a 15-0 run that spanned into the third to put the Blue and White ahead, 51-28, at the 2:20 mark. Lynchburg's only scoring in the frame came on an Olivia Harris jumper and a Bree Spainhour free throw, as the Generals held a commanding 53-31 edge going into the fourth.
Despite outscoring their visitors by three points in the fourth, Lynchburg's longest scoring run was just five points, which came on the first five points of the quarter. The Generals then coasted to the win while holding Lynchburg to 4-of-17 shooting in the fourth.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Schleusner scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, while making 8-of-12 shots from the floor. Bryant's 11-point first quarter fueled a 15-point game, as she made 5-of-9 three-point shots and tied Achter (7) for the second-most rebounds on the team. Juniors
Quinn McGuinness and
Icy Keneah, and sophomore
Zou Raine, contributed a combined 22 points and each scored at least seven.
Kate Littlejohn led the Hornets with 11 points and came away with three steals on defense, while Spainhour joined Littlejohn in double figures with 10 points. Spainhour added five rebounds and four assists to her line. Harris and Brooke Cason both scored nine points and pulled down three rebounds.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
With her 19 points, Schleusner passed Megan Babst '02 (1,265) for ninth on the program's all-time scoring list. Schleusner now has 1,278 points in her career and can move into eighth place with 28 more points (Louisa Feve '06).
TEAM STATS:
The Generals connected on 43.9 percent (25-57) of their shots in the game, with a high mark of 75 percent (9-12) in the first quarter, which included a perfect 4-for-4 from long range. Lynchburg ended the game making 25.8 percent (16-62) of its shots and made 25 percent or less in three of the four quarters, including a low of 7.1 percent (1-14) in the third.
W&L held a 52-30 advantage in total rebounds, including 15-10 in offensive rebounds, as well as second-chance points (11-7), bench points (15-6), points in the paint (28-20) and fastbreak points (11-7).
UP NEXT:
The Generals will break from action until after Thanksgiving when they host Marymount on Sunday, December 1, in Holekamp Gym at 2:00 p.m.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
