The Bobcat women's basketball team hosted its first Mountain East Conference (MEC) foe Saturday and surprised the preseason #1-ranked Fairmont State Falcons 81-72
 
As the MEC's No. 1 defense, the Bobcats held the conference's top-ranked Falcons to 26-of-60 from the field and out-rebounded Fairmont 36-27.
 
The scoring leader for the Bobcats and for the game was sophomore guard Sydney Baird who tallied 29 points, a personal second-best performance. She went 10-of-17 from the field which included 4-of-7 from beyond three. She also added 5-of-6 free throws and had 6 assists.
 
Senior guard Shelby Genes had her best outing of the young season with 18 points on 7-of-15 FGs and one successful free throw. She added six rebounds and three assists.
 
Hitting the boards hard for the Bobcats were Ritchie County freshman Rebekah Rupert who snagged 10 rebounds to go along with her eight points, and the #10 rebounder in the conference Desiree Roy who grabbed seven rebounds and also scored eight points.
 
The Falcons were led by Leslie Huffman with 25 points and seven rebounds, and Jalen Gibbs with 20 points and six rebounds.
 
The Bobcats return to action Tuesday, Nov. 26 when the team travels to Frostburg State University for a 5:30 tip.