OWENSBORO, Ky. — The Montreat College women's basketball team wrapped up its opening weekend at the Brescia Classic with a nonconference matchup against the hosts, the Brescia University Bearcats. Tied late in the second quarter, BU utilized a big run to create separation and never look back, ultimately seeing out a 79-69 victory over the Cavaliers. With the result, the Cavs moved to 0-2 on the young season, while the Bearcats climbed to 2-0.
Ayanna Varela opened the scoring for the Cavaliers off a Se'Nai Camper assist to tie the game at 2-2. Camper later knotted the score at four before converting a Sarah Williams pass to give the Cavs a 6-4 lead with 6:17 remaining in the frame. Brescia regained the advantage, but Kara Connor's layup with 43 seconds left brought the visitors within one at 11-10. The Bearcats closed the quarter with a layup and a 3-pointer to take a 16-10 lead into the second period.
Montreat fought back in the second quarter, overcoming a 22-10 deficit with a 12-0 run to pull even. BU opened the frame with six straight points before Camper sparked the visitors with a pair of free throws and a triple. Varela then generated offense with steals that led to consecutive fastbreak layups, including the tying basket (22-22). The Bearcats went scoreless for over five minutes, ending their drought with a 3-pointer at the 3:17 mark. Despite that quiet offensive stretch, the hosts finished the half strong to carry a 36-24 advantage into the break.
The Cavaliers continued to chip away after halftime, with Varela, EK Walraven and Camper scoring in the paint before Serenity Pennington connected from beyond the arc off a Williams pass, trimming the margin to 40-33 just over three minutes into the third quarter. Brescia capitalized on three Montreat turnovers in the ensuing minute, converting each into fastbreak points to stretch its lead to 51-35 with 5:16 remaining.
The visitors responded with a 14-1 surge, sparked by four consecutive points from Williams, a 3-pointer by Nuria Rubio and layups from Camper and Williams. The run brought the Cavs within 52-49 with just under two minutes remaining in the frame, but the hosts answered late to take a 61-50 lead into the final period.
Walraven opened the fourth quarter with an and-one to bring Montreat within nine prior to two host free throws and a 3-pointer that extended the margin to 67-53. Williams followed with four free throws in less than a minute, while Camper and Mariia Fedoseeva added layups to keep the visitors within reach. The Cavaliers cut the deficit to 72-64 with 2:36 remaining, and Fedoseeva later knocked down a 3-pointer off a Rubio assist with 1:07 left. However, the Bearcats held on down the stretch to claim the 79-69 victory.
"We saw lots of growth between game one and game two this weekend, which is what these early tournaments are all about," said Head Coach Jamie Moore. "We handled pressure significantly better and were able to get a little more into our offensive action. Having a small roster today hurt us on defense, but we saw significant improvements there as well. Overall, I'm excited about the growth and how quickly this group adapted from yesterday to today."
The Cavs shot 36.9 percent from the floor (24-65 FG), 16.0 percent from beyond the arc (4-25 3-pt FG) and 81.0 percent at the free-throw line (17-21 FT). Defensively, Montreat limited Brescia to 40.0 percent shooting from the field (28-70 FG), 37.9 percent from 3-point range (11-29 3-pt FG) and 57.1 percent at the charity stripe (12-21 FT). The hosts held the edge in rebounds (45-42), assists (19-12) and turnovers (21-19).
Williams scored a game-high 17 points, converted 7-of-8 free throws and added eight rebounds to go along with four assists. Camper finished with 16 points, six rebounds and two steals. Varela recorded a 10-point, 12-rebound double-double and four steals. Walraven added nine points, nine rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, and three assists.
The Montreat College women's basketball team concludes its season-opening three-game road trip on Thursday, Oct. 29, at Carolina University. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. in Winston-Salem, N.C.
