CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Lady Bobcats closed the first half with a 30-7 run to defeat West Liberty, 82-59 on Wednesday evening and advance to the semifinals of the WVIAC Tournament.

Jamie Kaufman led the Lady Bobcats with her 10th double-double of the season (18 points, 11 rebounds). Lydia Bridenbaugh netted 22 points, Daria Abroskina finished with 17 and Danae Hill chipped in with 16.

Kayla Ayers tallied 23 points to lead the Hilltoppers. Briana Kamarec (12) and Emily Blevins (12) also added double figures for WLU. 

The teams battled in the first half with West Liberty grabbing a brief 23-18 lead; Ayers contributed nine of the 23 points. It would be all Wesleyan from there as the Lady Bobcats closed the half, scoring 30 of the final 37 points. West Liberty was held to just three made field goals over the final 11 minutes of the half.

Wesleyan dominated the glass in the first 20 minutes by a 24-12 margin. The Lady Bobcats grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and turned them in to 10 second chance points. WVWC made 11-of-13 attempts at the free throw line, while the Hilltoppers did not attempt a single free throw.

West Liberty opened the second half with a 9-2 run to trim the lead to 50-39. Wesleyan countered with a 12-3 run to push the lead to 20 at 62-42. The Lady Bobcats would roll to the 82-59 victory.

The Lady Bobcats move to 22-6 on the year. The Lady Bobcats will face Shepherd in the semifinal round of the WVIAC tournament on Friday at 1 p.m.

Post Game News Conference

Jamie Kaufman Post West Liberty