BLUEFIELD, W.Va. – The Concord University women's basketball team defeated cross-county rival Bluefield State, 75-68, in a non-conference game Monday evening at Ned Shott Gymnasium.
Surrendering the lead only twice in the first half, Concord (17-9) went into the halftime tied with Bluefield State (2-16) 30-30.
The Mountain Lions came out of the halftime break hot and created separation in the third quarter. Junior guard
Jazz Blankenship splashed her third three-pointer of the game 12 seconds into the third period, leading to the Lester, West Virginia native scoring eight of her 16 points in the third quarter. Blankenship then hit her fourth triple of the game three minutes later. Fifth-year senior forward
Riley Fitzwater continued to make her presence felt in the paint, scoring all 10 of her third quarter points from inside the painted area, while also swatting away three BSC shots in the period.
Concord opened the third quarter on a 16-6 run as Blankenship and Fitzwater combined for 14 of the 16 points. The lead grew to 12 points, 56-44, after sophomore guard
Maddie Ratcliff hit foul shots on the period's final possession.
CU shot 76.9 percent from the field in the third quarter.
Bluefield State never got closer than seven points in the fourth quarter as Ratcliff helped close out the Big Blues by going 6-for-6 at the foul line in the final 35 seconds of the contest.
Concord opened up a 22-13 lead on BSC through 10 minutes of play, but was held to eight points in the second period as the Big Blues came back to tie the game at halftime.
The Mountain Lions thrived with second-chance points, cashing in on 17 second-chance points compared to Bluefield State's four.
CU shot 47.1 percent (24-for-51) from the field and 87.5 percent (21-for-24) from the charity stripe.
Fitzwater finished with a team-high 21 points to10 rebounds, and five blocked shots. Ratcliff had 20 points, shooting a perfect 12-for-12 from the free-throw line. Blankenship ended with 16 points, shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc. Senior guard
Maggie Guynn and sophomore guard
Jaisah Smith dished out four assists each on the day as Concord finished the game with 17 assists on 24 field goals.
The Mountain Lions owned a 36-28 advantage in rebounds
CU travels to Buckhannon, West Virginia Wednesday to take on West Virginia Wesleyan. Tipoff is at 5:30 p.m.
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