PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The
William and Mary women's basketball team was edged at Pittsburgh, 76-74, on
Sunday afternoon from the Petersen Events Center. The College led for the entire second-half until
the Panthers connected on a pair of foul-shots with one second remaining in the
contest. The Tribe falls to 0-2 on the
season, while Pitt improves to 1-1.
Senior forward Emily Correal tied a career-high with 27
points to go along with a team-leading 10 rebounds against the Panthers, while
classmate Janine Aldridge poured in 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point
range. Senior Taylor Hilton finished the
afternoon with 12 points and dished out career-high five assists, while
sophomore Kyla Kerstetter finished with six points.
In an opening half that featured five lead changes and ties,
Pittsburgh jumped out to an early 4-3 lead, but the Green and Gold responded
with an electric 14-2 run, culminating on Correal's jumper at the 14:13 mark. Aldridge ignited the 12-point advantage with
her 223rd career 3-pointer with 17:34 remaining in the half. In addition, the Massapequa, N.Y., native
knocked down two more treys during the stretch, while Correal totaled five
points in the spurt, and with 14:13 left in the first stanza the Tribe owned a
17-6 margin.
The Panther's answered with a run of their own as junior Ashley
Anderson gave Pitt the lead, 24-23, with a lay up at the 7:53 juncture. However, the Tribe regained and pushed its
edge to four, 40-36, after senior guard Chanel Murchison dished out a dime to
Correal, who laid it in off the glass with 1:43 left to go. Correal gave the Tribe a 43-40 halftime lead
after the local Pittsburgh area product connected from the charity stripe with
two seconds left on the clock.
In second-half action, the College pushed its margin to
60-53 after Kerstetter slipped in a lay up with 8:42 remaining. After Pittsburgh narrowed its deficit to
62-61, Hilton's 3-pointer gave W&M a four-point cushion at 65-61 at the
6:06 mark. In the same situation with
3:52 left to play, sophomore Anna Kestler sent a bounce pass to Aldridge, who
netted her fifth 3-pointer of the contest, giving the Tribe a 71-67 advantage.
After Pittsburgh regained the lead, 74-72, on a pair of
junior Asia Logan foul shots, Hilton responded on the very next possession. With eight seconds remaining in regulation, the
Washington, D.C., native netted an assist from Kestler feet from inside the foul
line, tying the contest at 74-74. With
less than a second left to play, Logan drew a foul and proceeded to make both
free-throws as Pitt escaped, 76-74, for the win.
For the contest, the Tribe shot 24-of-47 (51.1 percent) from
the floor, while it was 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from 3-point territory. Furthermore, the College tallied 21 assists
and recorded nine steals. Pittsburgh was
led by Logan, who tallied 36 points and 14 rebounds. The Panthers finished the day shooting
28-of-76 (36.8 percent) from the field and 2-of-19 (10.5 percent) from 3-point range.
The College returns home to Kaplan Arena on Wednesday, Nov.
14, as it hosts Virginia Union at 7 p.m.
