Box Score INSTITUTE, WVA – The Winston-Salem State Rams (4-5) staged a strong late rally, but the team could not make get the win when they took a 63-50 road loss to the West Virginia State Yellowjackets (4-5), Sunday afternoon. After trailing the Yellowjackets, 43-28 after the third quarter, the Rams scored 22 fourth quarter points, but could not pull out the victory.
As a team, the Rams played some solid offense, shooting 40.4% from the floor, but the team could not find a defensive answer for the Yellowjackets. WSSU junior guard Taelor Mandeville scored a career-high 10 points to lead the Rams in the loss. She was the only WSSU player to reach double-digit scoring in the game. Redshirt-sophomore forward Jatzmin Johnson added nine points while sophomore pulled in a team-high six rebounds in the game.
The game turned out to be a tale of two halves as both teams battled early, but kicked into offensive gear late. The game was a close affair early as the Rams' 10-7 lead at the 2:34 mark was the largest lead of the quarter for either team. In the end, the two teams battled to a 10-10 tie at the end of the quarter. The battle continued throughout much of the second quarter, but the Rams fell victim to an offensive drought as the team managed just one field goal in the final four minutes of the half and the team took a 20-28 deficit into the locker room at halftime.
Though the Rams continued to struggle through much of the third quarter, the team exploded for a strong fourth quarter, but could not pull out the win. The WSSU deficit grew to 12 points, 20-32 with 8:36 left in the quarter before the team turned on a defensive effort to hold the Yellowjackets scoreless for the next three minutes. However, the Rams could manage just three points to chip into the deficit as a tip-in from senior guard Awa Kalmstrom left the Rams trailing, 23-32 with 5:30 left in the quarter. For the quarter, the Rams totaled just four field goals to trail 28-43 at the end of the quarter.
After combining for just 22 third quarter points, the fourth quarter was completely different for the Rams and the Yellowjackets, who combined for 42 fourth quarter points. After falling behind by as many as 19 points, 34-53 with 6:02 left to play, the Rams chipped into their deficit and cut it down to nine points, 47-56 after a Mandeville three-pointer with 3:20 left to play. However, the effort was all that the team could muster as another Mandeville three-pointer with just under a minute to play was the only other score that the Rams could manage as they finished the day with the 50-63 loss.
With the loss, the Rams fall to 4-5 overall. The team will return to action in 2016 when the team opens Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) play on January 4th in a home game against the Lincoln (Pa.) Lions, last year's CIAA Championship Runners-Up.
For more information on Rams women's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.
