Pikeville, KY – Women's basketball paced themselves to a much-needed win Tuesday night in a matchup with River States Conference foe West Virginia Tech. The Bears used a 19-0 run stretched across the second and third quarters to drive ahead, winning by a final score of 89-77.
The Bears snap a three-game losing streak in the win over the Golden Bears, improving to 4-5 on the season with (3) Thomas More ahead on Saturday.
Morgan Stamper recorded her sixth double-double of the season Tuesday night, scoring 23 points and grabbing 15 rebounds. Stamper shot a solid 8-18 clip from the floor and splashed her first three-pointer of the season. The effort also included six of nine free throws and nine offensive rebounds.
Also putting up stellar numbers was
Alexis Reed, who ran point for the Bears. Reed scored 19 points including an impressive 4-8 from deep and dished out five assists.
Sierra Feltner scored 17 points on 6-9 from the field and finished with three assists.
The Bears finished shooting 43.1% from the field, their best performance coming in the fourth where they hit 7-12. UPIKE also took advantage of opportunities from the free throw line as shown by a 79% clip from the charity stripe.
The Bears cleaned up offensively after a slow start in the first, outscoring WVU-Tech 25-15 in the second quarter. The second quarter surge was led by Reed who knocked down a trio of three pointers over the course of a few possessions, totaling 11 in the period. The Bears entered halftime with a 12 point lead headed into the break.
The run continued into the third period as Stamper and Feltner scored on back-to-back possessions to grow the UPIKE lead to 16. The Bears retained a double-digit lead despite a solid push from WVU-Tech for the remainder of the third.
A late game push saw the Golden Bears come within eight points with 6:56 to go in the fourth, using threes and trips to the free throw line to chew at the Bears lead. It was Reed once again who switched the momentum permanently with 3:17 to go, splashing her fourth three of the game to put UPIKE up 80-69. Feltner sealed the win in the final minute, connecting on three straight free throws.
Women's basketball returns to action on Saturday, December 11th for a home matchup with (3) Thomas More. Tip-off between the Bears and Saints is slated for 2PM at the UPIKE Gym.
