Neither the University of Charleston nor West Virginia State women's basketball teams shot anywhere close to well to start Saturday afternoon's game. Both the Golden Eagles and Yellow Jackets got better, but UC finished best.
With a game-high 22 points from senior Chyress Lockhart, Charleston closed the regular season with a 60-55 win over WVSU, which allowed the Golden Eagles to climb ahead of the Yellow Jackets in the Mountain East Conference seedings. Seventh-seeded UC (12-16, 10-12 MEC) will host 10th-seeded Shepherd on Tuesday, while eighth-seeded WVSU (13-15, 10-12) will host the University of Virginia College at Wise on Tuesday.
The two teams went into the locker room, Charleston ahead 25-22, combining to shoot 15 of 58 from the floor. UC made 10 of 30 shots, while State made just 5 of 28. UC coach Adam Collins remained confident despite the low shooting percentages.
"We felt like we were getting shots that we normally make and normally go in for us, and they weren't going in," he said.
The Golden Eagles got some breathing room in the fourth quarter with a 58-49 lead, but Mya Walker was whistled for both a personal and a technical foul, then State's Laura Szorenyi and Aurreshae Hines each went 2 for 2. Hines added a layup to cut UC's lead to 58-55 with 28 seconds left.
All Charleston needed, though, was a pair of Lockhart free throws with 12 seconds to go to seal the win.
When asked what kept his Yellow Jackets from overtaking the Golden Eagles down the stretch, WVSU coach David Smith pointed to the 17-percent first-half shooting.
"It's called basketball," he said. "If you can't put the ball in the basket, how do you score points? We knew they weren't going to guard somebody. If I see they're not guarding me, a competitor is going to say, 'Hey, I'm gonna prove them wrong. You made a mistake,' instead of saying, 'Take me out, I can't shoot.' They have that kind of attitude, that spreads through the team."
Szorenyi led the Yellow Jackets with 14 points, with Hines adding 11. Walker and Kiara Johnson each added 14 points, with Johnson pulling down 14 rebounds. Lockhart added 10 rebounds.