CHARLESTON, W. Va. – The University of Charleston Women's Basketball team will begin their quest towards an MEC Championship on Thursday afternoon as they take on the Fighting Falcons of Fairmont State at WesBanco Arena with tip set for 2:15 p.m. Charleston, who heads into the Mountain East Tournament fresh off a win over West Virginia State on Senior Day, will face off against Fairmont State in the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
Media Coverage:
Live Stats and video feed will be available for Thursday's game through the links supplied below:
The Becky Burke led Golden Eagles come into Thursday after defeating the Yellow Jackets from West Virginia State on Saturday by a score of 98-75. Charleston was led offensively by
Anna Hayton, who finished up her senior campaign with 29 points and 13 rebounds while Junior guard
Brooklyn Pannell reached 1,000 career points as a Golden Eagle in the contest.
On Saturday, it took the Golden Eagles just over two minutes and a 7-0 lead before West Virginia State was able to score their first bucket of the game. Just over four minutes later, the Charleston lead would be extended to 15 on a made bucket from Hayton that put the Golden Eagles ahead 22-7. The Yellow Jackets and Golden Eagles would close out the opening quarter exchanging baskets with the home team carrying a 28-13 lead at the end of the quarter.
The second quarter saw the Golden Eagle lead jump to 21 as a shot from
Taliyah Hopkins saw Charleston leading 45-24 with 5:17 remaining in the opening half. To close out the quarter, Charleston led by as many as 25 and took a 59-37 lead into the locker room.
The third quarter saw the Golden Eagles hold on to their commanding lead before the final minutes of the quarter saw the Yellow Jackets cut the UC lead to 14 before a successful three-point attempt from Dakota Reeves put Charleston ahead 79-62 headed into the final quarter.
In the 4
th quarter, Pannell reached her 1,000
th point at UC on a made three-point attempt that put the Golden Eagles ahead 84-63 with 6:50 left in the game. Charleston then went on to finish out the closing minutes of the contest to secure a 98-75 win headed into the MEC Tournament in Wheeling next week.
For the game, the Golden Eagles forced 18 Yellow Jacket turnover and outscored the opposition 28-16 in points off turnovers.
Full recap and box score
here
Scouting the Opponent:
Fairmont State comes into the contest holding a record of 15-13 (12-10 MEC) and lost their season finale to the Bobcats of Frostburg State on Saturday by a score of 79-70. Winners in four of their last five contests, the Fighting Falcons have put together their best season (.536 win percentage) since the 2016-17 campaign before losing to Wheeling in the MEC Championship game. In her first season at the helm of the Falcons, Stephanie Anderson has produced the 10
th best scoring offense in the country (80.4 points per game), the 9
th best free throw percentage (79.3%), and ranks 17
th in the country in turnovers per game with just 12.8 per contest. The Falcons are led offensively by upperclassmen Sierra Kotchman (20.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.3 apg) and Rachel Laskody (14.4 ppg, 8.3 rpg). Fairmont State ranks 1
st in the MEC in fewest turnovers (359) and free throw percentage while the Golden Eagles rank 1
st in free throw attempts, free throws made, scoring defense, three-point field goal defense, and three-point field goal percentage.
Things to Know for Thursday:
- The Golden Eagles won both of their games this season against the Falcons and currently hold a four-game win streak over the opposition. In their last contest on February 1st, the UC tandem of Erykah Russell and Anna Hayton combined for 47 points and 21 rebounds.
- Two of the three lowest offensive rebounding games for the Golden Eagles came this season against the Falcons. Charleston, who averages over ten offensive boards per game, was able to record just 11 combined against Fairmont State in two games played.
- Charleston, who forces 19.3 turnovers per contest, was held to just 19 total in two contests against Fairmont State this season.
Matchup History:
The Golden Eagles and the Falcons have squared off 19 times in their history with Charleston holding the slim 10-9 advantage. The Golden Eagles four-game win streak against Fairmont State is currently the longest in the history of the matchup.
