ATHENS, W.Va. – The Concord University women's basketball team used a last-second shot to take down Mountain East Conference foe West Virginia Wesleyan in its first game of 2025 inside the Carter Center Thursday evening.
After trailing by one with three seconds left on the clock, senior guard
Skylar Davidson found junior forward
Abbie Smith on a full-court pass that set her up for the game-winning shot. Smith split two defenders and banked in a 20-foot shot as time expired.
CU (6-7, 3-3 MEC) led by one, 71-70, with 24 seconds remaining, but a trio of WVWC (9-2, 5-1 MEC) free throws gave the Bobcats the slight edge before the game's final possession.
The Mountain Lions built an early lead, as Smith and graduate forward
Trina Lewis scored four points each to jump ahead 8-0. Sophomore guard
Madison Young connected on a three-pointer with two seconds left in the first quarter to quiet a West Virginia Wesleyan run and lead 17-11 after 10 minutes of action.
Young struck again to begin the second period, drilling another three-pointer to extend the advantage to double figures, 22-11, at the 9:09 mark. WVWC cut into the margin and led 29-28 with 41 seconds left until halftime before a three-pointer from Davidson as time expired saw Concord go up 31-29 at the break.
After battling for the lead to begin the second half, junior guard
Kennedy Scales made a three-pointer to lead 37-36 with 8:08 on the clock. Junior forward
Imani Hickman buried a second three-pointer, ultimately leading to an 11-0 run. Senior guard
Sanaiya Morris followed with a third three-pointer to keep the run going and Smith capped the run with a layup. Hickman added five more points later in the frame to carry a 55-50 advantage into the fourth quarter.
The Bobcats cut into the deficit, tying the game at 60-60 with six minutes left, but four CU free throws and a coast-to-coast steal conversion from Morris brought the edge back to five, 68-63, with 3:27 remaining. Smith scored eight of the Maroon and Gray's last 10 points to help secure the win over the last unbeaten team in the MEC.
Smith led all players with 30 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double and notched the third 30-point performance in her career. Hickman (11) and Scales (10) also scored in double figures and adding a pair of three-pointers each. Davidson dished out eight assists, a season-best, and one shy of her career-high. As a team, CU forced WVWC into 23 turnovers while picking away 11 steals.
Concord heads to David & Elkins for an MEC Conference road game Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
