Box Score
ETTRICK, VA – The Livingstone women's basketball team could not continue its momentum from the previous two games Saturday evening as they fell to the Virginia State Trojans 75-53.
Senior guard Kayler McBride led the Blue Bears with 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting in 27 minutes of play. Junior forward Cassaundra Rhodes also scored in double-figures with 10 points while junior forward Brittany Wright led the team with 10 rebounds.
The Blue Bears got off to a rough start in the first half, falling quickly behind 6-0 and continuing to trail 10-2 with less than four minutes gone in the contest. Rhodes go the Blue Bears back within six with 14:47 on the clock, but that was as close as Livingstone was to the Trojans for the remainder of the half.
With the score 14-8, Virginia State went on a 9-0 run over a two-minute span to take a 23-8 edge with 12:15 to play in the first half. With the Blue Bears trailing by 16, Livingstone went on a mini 6-2 run to get within 12, but the Trojans responded with an 11-0 run of their own to open up a 42-19 lead. Virginia State took a 49-25 lead into the break.
Kayler McBride led the Blue Bears in scoring in the first half, notching 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting. Montiya Harrison pulled down four rebounds to lead the team. The Blue Bears turned the ball of 14 times, mostly in the full-court press of the Trojans.
Virginia State continued their hot streak to start the second half, going on a 9-4 run over the first 5:05 of the second half. The Blue Bears, however, did not give up their fight. Cassaundra Rhodes put home a jumper with 14:33 on the clock and jumpstarted a Livingstone 20-5 run and got them within 14 points with 5:55 remaining in the contest. Unfortunately for the Blue Bears, a jumper by Montinya Harrison with 5:55 left was the final field goal they made. Free throws by the Blue Bears down the stretch brought the final score to 75-53.
With the loss the Blue Bears fell to 6-10 overall and 2-7 in the CIAA while the Trojans improved to 12-3 overall and 8-2 in the conference.
