Frostburg's comeback not enough in loss to WVSU

Cumberland Times-News, Md.
·2 min read

Dec. 2—FROSTBURG — The Frostburg women forced overtime with a fourth-quarter comeback, but were unable to hold on in the extra period as West Virginia State won 88-79 Wednesday evening in Bobcat Arena.

The Bobcats (2-5, 1-2 Mountain East Conference) trailed 64-57 heading into the fourth quarter and outscored WVSU 16-9 in the fourth to force overtime. The Yellow Jackets (5-1, 2-1 MEC) scored seven unanswered to pull away in overtime.

Frostburg led early 4-0 after the WVSU bench received a technical foul. Trailing 19-14, Emilee Weakley finished an and-one opportunity and Ariana Briggs hit a 3-pointer to take the lead at 20-19.

The Bobcats shut out the Yellow Jackets in the first two minutes of the second quarter. WVSU responded by holding Frostburg scoreless for seven minutes. The Yellow Jackets led at halftime 38-33.

WVSU expanded their lead to eight early in the third quarter and a pair of 3s late in the quarter extended their lead to 64-57 heading into the fourth quarter.

The teams combined for two points in the first three minutes of the final quarter. WVSU led by seven with just over five minutes left. After a timeout, Weakley scored three straight and Ciara Thomas was fouled after a steal. She split her two free throws to tie the game at 70 with less than three minutes to go.

The Yellow Jackets went 3 for 6 at the line to give Frostburg a chance. Thomas found Maggie Sharp in the corner for a 3 that tied the game at 73 with 10 seconds left.

In overtime, the teams exchanged 3s before Sharp finished a layup to cut the Bobcats' deficit to 79-78. The Yellow Jackets finished the game on 7-0 run to seal the win.

Weakley led all scorers with 32 points, the most from a Bobcat in a single game since Victoria Diggs in 2020. She finished with a double-double with 14 rebounds.

Briggs-Hall scored nine points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Shelby Funchess and Thomas led Frostburg defensively combining for five steals and two blocks.

Frostburg travels to Charleston to face the Golden Eagles on Saturday at 2 p.m.