Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
Appalachian State
Strong Start Lifts Appalachian State To 63-58 Win Over Women's Basketball
11/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 13, 2009
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Appalachian State guard Sam Ramirez tallied a game-high 23 points to lead the Mountaineers to a 63-58 win over the Thundering Herd women's basketball team in Friday's season opener at the Cam Henderson Center.
"We dug ourselves in so deep that we really had a hard time climbing out in the second half," head coach Royce Chadwick said. "They did some things to us, they shot balls in our face, penetrated by us and put in some big time shots. They made big plays and we were unable to make pretty much a basic play for a long, long time."
Marshall (0-1) struggled out of the gate, hitting just one out of its first 18 shots as ASU (1-0) opened up a 25-9 lead over the first 14 minutes of the contest. Down 2-0 two minutes into the game, Chantelle Handy found Tynikki Crook for a layup to tie the game.
From there, it was all Appalachian State. The Mountaineers reeled off seven straight and 16 of the next 18 points en route to an 18-4 advantage. Sophomore Rashedah Henriques kept the game within striking distance for the Herd, hitting two three-pointers in the first half as MU found itself down 31-19 at the half.
The Mountaineers shot a strong 52% from the field in the opening stanza while Marshall hit just 12.9% of its shots (4-31).
The Herd came out stronger in the second half, cutting the lead back to single digits, 38-27, five minutes into the half. A trey by Alyssa Hammond cut into the ASU advantage, but the Mountaineers fought back, extending the lead to as many as 15 points, 53-38, with nine minutes remaining in the game.
Marshall refused to give up, cutting into the lead over the remainder of the contest. Down 58-48 with just over four minutes left, a Hammond bucket cut the lead to eight before three straight points by fellow senior Chantelle Handy made it a 58-53 game.
ASU extended its lead back to eight points, 61-53, inside of two minutes to play, but MU put forth one last run. Tania Walters connected on her second three of the game and following a Mountaineer turnover, Hammond hit a layup to bring the Herd within a possession.
The Herd looked to have a prime opportunity to cut into the lead even further. Following Hammond's bucket, another ASU turnover gave Marshall the ball, but two missed shots gave the ball back to the Mountaineers, who wrapped up the game on Ramirez' tenth field goal of the game with 15 seconds remaining.
Hammond and Henriques were the top scorers for Marshall. Hammond scored 15 points, which included a perfect 8-8 performance from the charity stripe while Henriques tied her career high with 11 points, nine of which coming via the three-point shot.
MU dominated the offensive glass, grabbing 22 offensive boards while limiting ASU to just six. The Herd defense was also solid, forcing the Mountaineers into 27 turnovers while committing just 11 of its own. The difference came in the shooting. Marshall shot 24.3% for the game while Appalachian State shot a scorching 51.9%.
Ramirez led all players with 23 points and eight rebounds. Chakeitha Weldon chipped in 14 to go along with seven boards.
The Herd will look to rebound on Monday evening as it will host Big East foe Seton Hall. Tip is set for 7 p.m. at the Cam Henderson Center. Following the game against the Pirates, MU will host former Mid-American Conference foe Kent State on Saturday, November 21 at Noon.
