BLUEFIELD, Va.— The Montreat women's basketball team suffered defeat at the hands of the Bluefield University Rams in Bluefield, Va. Saturday afternoon, falling in an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) contest by an 87-79 final score. With the defeat, the Cavaliers slid to 8-3 (6-3 AAC) on the season.
Montreat got off to a stellar start in the game's opening minutes by jumping out to an 11-2 lead after just 3:28 had passed.
Virginia Edmondson, who scored eight points in the opening frame, powered the Cavaliers early with a pair of 3-point baskets; however, buckets ultimately proved difficult to come by for the visitors throughout the rest of the half. The Cavs shot 26.3 percent in the period (5-19 FG), and a late Bluefield surge trimmed the Montreat lead to 17-16 by the quarter's end.
Bluefield (6-6, 6-4 AAC) claimed its first lead of the ballgame during the second quarter's initial possession, but the Cavaliers responded with a 6-0 run to retake the lead, 24-21. Despite suddenly facing another deficit, the hosts were undeterred. The Rams shot 60 percent in the second (9-15 FG) while simultaneously making the Cavs work hard for everything, and it resulted in a 41-37 lead at the intermission.
The Cavaliers connected on just 10 of 34 (29.4 percent) looks from the field in the first half compared to the Rams' 15-for-29 (51.7 percent) effort. Even with the sizable shooting disparity, a 9-0 edge on the offensive glass and a 15-for-17 showing at the free throw line kept Montreat within arm's length at halftime.
Edmondson totaled 10 points to lead the Cavs through 20 minutes of gameplay, while
Adrianna Gullette added eight points of her own.
Mariya Williams notched six points and four rebounds in the first half.
While the Cavaliers shot under 32 percent in three different quarters Saturday afternoon, the third frame was the exception. Montreat scored on six consecutive possessions early in the period to level the contest at 52-52, and the team went 11-for-16 from the floor in the quarter (68.8 percent).
Makayla Thompson poured in nine points during the high-octane frame while Edmondson contributed six points.
Aebri Graham buried a corner 3-pointer to put the Cavs up late in the third, but Bluefield capitalized on a foul with just tenths of a second remaining on the clock to knot the score at 65-65 heading into the fourth.
Montreat started the fourth quarter by going 1-for-8 from the floor (12.5 percent), and the Rams took advantage. Having never led by more than two possessions, Bluefield burst out to an 82-71 lead behind a 10-2 run over 2:06. The Cavaliers managed to get back within single digits on three separate occasions, but every time the Cavs pulled close, the Rams found a way to answer. As a result, Bluefield came away with an 87-79 win, its fourth straight AAC victory.
"Bluefield played really well. My players worked hard, but we just weren't good enough on the defensive end today," said head coach
Josh Thompson.
The Cavs took seven more shots than the Rams throughout the course of Saturday's game thanks to a 13-2 edge on the offensive glass; however, the visitors couldn't do much with those extra opportunities as they ended the afternoon with a 38.6-percent shooting effort (27-70 FG). Montreat did connect on eight of its 21 3-point attempts (38.1 percent) and 17 of its 20 free throws (85.0 percent). On the other side, Bluefield shot an efficient 51.6 percent (32-63 FG) overall, 35.0 percent from behind the arc (7-20 3pt FG) and 76.2 percent at the charity stripe (16-21 FT).
Edmondson registered a team-high 19 points, one of four Cavaliers to score in double figures. Gullette filled out the stat sheet with her 17-point, 7-rebound and 5-assist performance, and Thompson followed suit with 17 points and seven boards of her own. Williams concluded the day with 12 points and seven rebounds.
The Montreat women's basketball team dives into exhibition play tomorrow afternoon with contest at Western Carolina University, an NCAA Division I institution. Tipoff on Sunday is set for 2:00 p.m. in Cullowhee, N.C.
