WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: HEARTBREAK CITY

LADY LIONS DROP DOUBLE-OVERTIME THRILLER IN WVIAC SEMIFINALS

• Share:

Not every thrilling finish has a happy ending.

The Concord women's basketball met rival Glenville State in the semifinals of the WVIAC Tournament, and the two squads didn't decide the outcome until less than a second remained in double overtime.

Kenyell Goodson sank two free throws with nine-tenths of a second left, giving Glenville State a 96-94 victory in an epic matchup that immediately joined the ranks of the greatest games in WVIAC Tournament history.

Concord came back from five-point deficits in each of the two overtimes before suffering a loss that ended its historic season at 23-6.  Glenville State advanced to Saturday's championship game against West Virginia Wesleyan.

GSC started the game in dominant fashion, hitting three point shots on four of their first five possessions to take a quick 14-5 lead.  The Pioneers would extend their advantage to as many 16 points, at 41-25, with 5:39 left in the 1st half.

Concord trimmed its deficit to 43-34 at the break, trailed 50-37 less than three minutes into the 2nd half, then began its comeback.  Jolysa Brown and Anna Truckley combined to propel CU on a 21-3 run – Brown scored ten points and Truckley nine -- that put the Lady Lions ahead 59-55 with 11:33 remaining in regulation.

CU took its biggest lead at 74-67 when Camisha Alexander drained a three-pointer with 2:44 to go.  But Glenville State again caught fire from beyond the arc, and two three-pointers from Beth Deren and one from Ginny Petties drew the Pioneers even at 76-76 with 1:13 left.

GSC took a 78-76 lead on Tenisha Wilson's jumper in the lane with :16 left in regulation, but Concord quickly inbounded the ball to Andrea Bertrand, who drove length of the court for a layup that tied the game seven seconds later.

Glenville State tried a long pass on their inbounds play, but Rachel Artrip intercepted it near midcourt and passed to Alexander, whose 28-foot shot and the buzzer just missed.

In the first overtime, the Pioneers moved out to an 85-80 lead with only :35 left, but Concord began another comeback.  Brown's jumper got CU within three points with :21 to go, CU got the ball back, and Alexander banked in a three-pointer eight seconds later that tied the contest at 85-85 and sent the game to a second overtime.

The Lady Lions spotted the Pioneers a 92-87 lead with 2:58 left before coming back again.  A jumper from Brown and two free throws from Truckley pulled Concord within 92-91, and after Mishae Miles' putback put the Pioneers up 94-91 with :17 to go, Alexander drained another dramatic three-pointer that tied the game with :07 left.

The Pioneers quickly rushed up court, getting the ball to Kenyell Goodson for a layup.  She missed, but was fouled with nine-tenths of a second showing.  Goodson made two free throws that won the game.

Glenville State shot .398 from the field (35-88) while Concord was .341 (28-82).  The Pioneers were 12-31 from three-point range, with Concord finishing 6-27.  CU outrebounded GSC 61-53 and went a remarkable 32-36 (.889) from the free throw line, while Glenville State was 14-18.

Brown concluded her superlative career with game highs of 28 points and 22 rebounds – scoring 22 points and grabbing 18 boards after halftime.  It was her 20th double-double of the season and the 47th of her career.  The senior of Hinton, WV also posted game-highs with seven assists, five steals and three blocked shots.

Truckley recorded her first double-double, with a season-high 19 points and 11 rebounds, and was a perfect 10-10 at the line.

Alexander added 14 points, seven rebounds and three steals. 
Amanda Smith kept Concord in the game during Glenville State's early rally, scoring 12 of her 14 points in the 1st half.  Holly Bibb provided a lift off the bench with a season-high 13 points.

Miles topped Glenville State with a double-double of 21 points and 13 rebounds. 


BOXSCORE
(courtesy WVIAC)


Concord set a new school record for wins in a season and reached the WVIAC semifinals for the second straight year.  Friday was the final collegiate game for the Lady Lions' four seniors -- Alexander, Bibb, Brown and Truckley.

Print Friendly Version