By Cody Nespor
For MountainEast.org
WHEELING, W.Va. — The hottest team in the Mountain East Conference pulled off the first upset of the conference tournament as seventh-seeded West Virginia State knocked off second-seeded West Virginia Wesleyan, 61-58, in MEC Women’s Basketball quarterfinal action Thursday afternoon.
Powered by junior Baylee Goins’ 12 fourth quarter points, the Yellow Jackets (18-12) won for the 11th time in their last 12 games to advance to Saturday’s semifinal in Wheeling’s WesBanco Arena.
“We’ve just been taking it one game at a time, trying to stay focused, stay locked in,” WVSU coach Charles Marshall said. “I’m proud of our group, today they prevailed down the stretch in the final minutes when the game got tight.”
Goins scored all 12 of WVSU’s points in the fourth quarter as the Yellow Jackets held off a furious second-half comeback attempt by the Lady Bobcats (19-9).
“We played really well the last month of the season and we were just one basket short,” Wesleyan coach Brett Vincent said. “They only scored 61 points, so the pace was in our advantage, but they put a lot of pressure on you. They made us play uncomfortable, which is a compliment to them.”
The Lady Bobcats went down 10 points, 52-42, at the start of the fourth quarter, but used an eight-point run to cut it down to a two-point lead with six minutes to play.
A Goins three-pointer late in the shot clock helped preserve WVSU’s lead going into the final minutes of play.
“We just played hard as a team,” Goins said. “I got some open looks, but mainly it was just the team playing hard and communicating.”
The Yellow Jackets made just two of their final 15 attempts from the floor, but Goins’ timely makes and 4-for-4 showing at the free throw line carried them over the finish line.
“We stayed poised and weathered that storm,” Marshall said. “I thought valuing the basketball and making plays down the stretch was crucial for us.”
After a slow start to the game, West Virginia State took a lead late in the first quarter and never looked back. The Yellow Jackets used their superior depth and full-court pressure defense to gradually wear down the Bobcats, closing each quarter strong. WVSU had 10 players log at least 16 minutes, while Wesleyan only had seven players total see the floor.
“You do wear down, but you try to do some things in your half-court sets to gain a few minutes of rest,” Vincent said. “It’s difficult to play in these types of games, but we’ve done it all year.”
The Lady Bobcats trailed 35-25 at halftime but scored the first 6 points in the third quarter to climb back into contention.
“During halftime, our focus was just to get back into the game,” Wesleyan senior Emma Witt said. “We had nothing to lose at that point, we were already down.”
Witt, an All-MEC first-team selection, led the Bobcats with a 23-point, 11-rebound double-double. Desiree Roy finished with 14 points and 12 boards of her own. Fellow MEC first-teamer Sydney Baird scored 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
Goins led a balanced WVSU attack with 18 points, shooting 5 of 9 from the floor, 3 of 6 from three and 5 of 6 from the line. Hallie Bailey and Latisha Parris were next with nine points each.
“I’m just proud of our team,” Marshall said. “They work hard every day. I’m very demanding, but they come and perform and I appreciate that.”
The Yellow Jackets advance to the MEC tournament semifinals for the second year in a row. As the No. 2 seed last season, WVSU made it to the tournament championship.
“It’s a big benefit for our returners because they were here last year, so they know what to expect, this is not foreign to them,” Marshall said. “They’ve helped our new players get adjusted and that experience is invaluable.”
