West Virginia State traveled to Marion County on Thursday and left with a 110-77 loss to No. 7-ranked Fairmont State in Mountain East Conference men's basketball play.
West Virginia University transfer and former Shady Spring High standout Chase Connor blistered the nets for 40 points, including an MEC- record 13 3-point field goals. Connor finished 13 for 22 from the field, all from 3-point range, and now has highest total of 3-pointers in a game in NCAA Division II this season. Shammgod Wells dished a game-high 19 assists for the Falcons (22-3, 16-3 MEC).
For State (6-18, 4-15), Markee Mazyck finished with 28 points and nine rebounds, while Tyrie Elliott added 18 points and Tyler Thompson 12.
nnn
UC MEN LOSE: The University of Charleston led at the half, but couldn't hold on down the stretch in dropping a 94-83 decision Thursday at Shepherd.
Naim Muhammad paced Shepherd (14-11, 9-10 MEC) with 37 points and seven rebounds, while Skyler Roman added 22 points and seven boards.
For UC (13-12, 10-9), Aleksander Kesic led the way with 22 points while Jaylen Hinton added 16. Justin Coleman had 13 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Golden Eagles.
nnn
UC WOMEN WIN: The University of Charleston erased a halftime deficit in the third quarter and then held off a late rally to post a 70-69 MEC win Thursday at Shepherd.
Shepherd's Kristen Nunn missed a potential game-winning layup with five seconds to play.
UC (8-16, 6-12 MEC) was led by Chyress Lockhart's 18 points, while Kiara Johnson and Mya Walker added 14 points apiece. Johnson also grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds, while Lockhart dealt a game-high five assists.
Cara Mason led the way for Shepherd (5-19, 4-14) with 21 points, while Morgan Arden added 15 points and Liz Myers 13 points and 11 rebounds.
nnn
STATE WOMEN LOSE: West Virginia State cut a seven-point deficit down to two with under 30 seconds left but couldn't get over the hump, dropping a 63-60 decision to Fairmont State Thursday evening at the Joe Retton Arena.
Former George Washington standout Rachel Ward led State with 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting from 3-point range and Deyahnna Styles added 12 points for the Yellow Jackets (12-13, 9-10). Deidra Combs paced Fairmont State (16-9, 10-9) with 24 points.
nnn
MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS BASKETBALL: Andrew Jackson defeated Sissonville 35-31 in the championship game of the Kanawha County Middle School girls basketball tournament Thursday.
Bailee Goins led AJ with 16 points and Leslie Boley added 12. Kaya Thompson paced Sissonville with 10 points.
Dupont defeated Elkview 36-23 in the consolation game.
nnn
WVU BASEBALL: West Virginia University opens its season at 11 a.m. today when it begins a three-game series at Charleston Southern.
The series continues with games at 11 a.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. Sunday. The series will be played at Joseph P. Riley Park, in Charleston, South Carolina, which also serves as the home to the South Atlantic League's Charleston Riverdogs.
West Virginia holds a 9-4 all-time advantage over Charleston Southern, including a three-game sweep last season. West Virginia was 27-27 last season, while Charleston Southern finished at 23-30.
WVU will send junior right-hander Chad Donato to the mound to face Charleston Southern senior right-hander Evan Raynor. Donato started 14 games last season for the Mountaineers, tossing 96 2/3 and compiling a 7-6 record with a 3.07 ERA.
nnn
MARSHALL BASEBALL: The Thundering Herd opens its season today when it begins a three-game series at Florida A&M.
Today's game begins at 4 p.m. with right-hander Chase Boster taking the mound for the Herd against A&M southpaw JoJo Durden.
Saturday's game is slated for 1 p.m., while Sunday's finale will start at 11 a.m.
Marshall returns six positional starters from last season's 19-31 team, including former Herbert Hoover standout Corey Bird, who batted .307 with 23 RBIs last season.
nnn
LITTLE LEAGUE TRYOUTS: The South Charleston Little League will hold tryouts on Saturday, Feb. 27, at Oakes Field Gynamsium on Third Ave. in South Charleston. Girls ages 6-8 will try out at 9 a.m., boys 6-8 will begin at 10 a.m., boys 9-10 will start at noon, boys 11-12 will begin at 1 p.m. and girls 9-12 will start at 2 p.m. Contact Karen Musgrave at 304-543-0082 or Jamie Little at 304-590-0599 for more information.