WASHINGTON, D.C. -
The William and Mary women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought decision to George
Washington, 58-51, on Sunday afternoon at the Charles E. Smith Center. Senior Taylor Hilton led the College with 10
points, six rebounds and three steals.
Down by as many as 18 in the second-half, W&M trimmed the deficit to
four on multiple occasions late in the contest, but GW held on for the narrow
victory. The Tribe falls to 1-3 on the
season, while George Washington improves to 2-1.
Senior Emily Correal finished the afternoon with seven
points and eight rebounds, while classmate Jaclyn McKenna also chipped in with
seven points on 3-of-5 shooting from the floor.
Junior Kaitlyn Mathieu tallied seven points and ripped down eight
rebounds, while the duo of sophomore Jazmen Boone and freshman Brooke Stewart
scored five points apiece.
For the game, the College shot 15-of-56 (26.8 percent) from
the field, while it stymied the Colonials to shoot 19-of-57 (33.3 percent) from
the floor. W&M netted five
3-pointers on 16 attempts (31.3 percent), while holding GW to just three treys
on 15 chances (20 percent).
In a defensive minded first half, the College raced out to a
5-0 advantage courtesy of McKenna's 3-pointer, which was followed by senior
Chanel Murchison's jumper from the baseline.
However, the Colonials answered with a 7-0 spurt and led, 7-5, with
13:52 remaining in the half.
After McKenna's jumper at the 13:22 juncture tied the contest,
9-9, George Washington scored 11 points over the next six minutes and owned an
18-11 lead with 7:14 left to play. Stewart
cut the deficit to four, 22-18, after the Topsfield, Mass., native drove
baseline, through traffic, and laid it in off the glass. The Colonials ended the half with a bucket
and a pair of made free-throws as it led, 26-18, after the opening 20 minutes
of action.
Much like the first half, the second stanza started with
both teams imposing their defensive will.
Almost eight minutes into the frame, the squads had combined for only 10
points as a tenacious half-court mentality from the Green and Gold kept the GW
offense stuck in neutral. However, it was the Colonials who held the advantage,
32-22, with 12:12 remaining in the affair.
The College seemed destined for a rally as Boone cut the GW
margin to eight, 32-24, with a layup at the 11:50 mark. However, the Colonials responded with eight
straight points, six of which coming from graduate senior Tara Booker, as it
increased its lead to 40-24 with 10:26 left to go.
Trailing 48-30 with 4:40 remaining, the Green and Gold
utilized a 17-3 run as it zapped the GW advantage to four, 51-47, with a minute
left in the game. Hilton ignited the
charge with a layup and capped the 14-point advantage with a trifecta with a
minute left in regulation. During the
spurt, Hilton accounted for eight points on two 3-pointers while Stewart and
Mathieu tallied three points apiece. In
addition, Correal's 3-pointer from the right corner with 1:17 remaining cut the
GW lead to six, 50-44.
A McKenna lay up with 49 seconds left to play kept the Tribe
alive, 53-49, but the Colonials sealed the win by netting five-of-six free
throws down the stretch.
The College returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 24, when it
plays Austin Peay in the University of Texas at San Antonio's Thanksgiving
Holiday Tournament. Tip-off against the
Governors from San Antonio, Texas is slated for 8 p.m.
