Box Score
INSTITUTE, W.Va. -- The Notre Dame Falcons fell on the road on Thursday evening, dropping a 97-81 decision to the West Virginia State Yellow Jackets.
For the Falcons (2-4, 1-2 MEC) the loss was their second in three tries on the road, while the victory for the Yellow Jackets (3-3, 2-1 MEC) was their second at home, and their second in their last three games overall.
Notre Dame fell behind early, 5-0, after missing their first four shots, but they rallied quickly with six straight points over the next two minutes after getting buckets from
Kelsey Miller and
Marisa Finazzo to take a 6-5 lead.
The contest was closely contested for the rest of the first quarter, though the Yellow Jackets maintained a lead for most of it. After a
Kim Cook tip-in brought NDC within two (17-15) with 2:49 left in the first quarter, the Yellow Jackets scored six of the final eight points of the quarter to take a 23-17 lead.
As it turned out, that was just the beginning of what turned into a 13-4 run for the Yellow Jackets, which extended into the halfway point of the second quarter. At the end of the aforementioned 13-4 run, WV State had a 30-19 lead, before the Falcons came storming back. Miller caught fire, and was responsible for NDC's next six points, which triggered an 11-0 run, and was capped by a game tying 3-pointer from
Kyleigh Ramlow with 2:49 left in the opening half.
After the Falcons tied the game at 30-30, WV State went on to score eight of the game's next 10 points to take a six point (38-32) lead, and they ended up taking a 41-34 advantage into the locker room at the break.
Miller led the charge for NDC in the opening half, turning in a double-double before the break with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Notre Dame assisted on 11 of their 12 makes in the opening half, while hitting on all seven of their free throws.
The third quarter did not go well for the Falcons. They missed their first three shots and committed a pair of turnovers over the first two minutes, while the Yellow Jackets went on a 9-0 run, before
Jessie Stout made a layup at the 7:57-mark.
Stout's layup temporarily stopped the bleeding, as it brought the Falcons within 14 (50-36), but that was as close as they would get through the rest of the quarter. The Yellow Jackets led by as many as 26 (74-48) in the third quarter, and took a 77-53 lead into the fourth.
Unfortunately for the Falcons, they were only able to make a minor dent in that deficit in the fourth quarter, as the Yellow Jackets led by double digits the rest of the way.
Miller led the Falcons with her third double-double of the season, pulling down 15 rebounds to go along with 20 points and a pair of blocks. Cook delivered her first double-double of the year, with 16 points, 13 board and a team high, six assists.
Seina Adachi scored in double figures as well, adding 14 points and a pair of rebounds.
The Falcons return to action on Saturday, Dec. 3, when they return home to Murphy Gymnasium to square off against the University of Charleston in another Mount East Conference contest. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.
