LEXINGTON, Va. – The Washington and Lee University Women's Basketball Team (10-2, 3-1 ODAC) was able to withstand a vicious scoring run in the final two minutes by Emory & Henry College (6-7, 1-3 ODAC) for a 65-61 Friday evening at the Warner Center.
The Generals got out to a 9-2 lead at the 16:17 mark of the first half and increased their advantage to 12-4 with 13:00 on the clock. E&H trimmed the margin to two thanks to an 8-2 run and would eventually tie things up at 21-all with 1:49 to go before the intermission. Washington and Lee would take a 28-23 advantage into the locker room thanks to a 7-2 run to close the final 90 seconds of the opening period.
The first 10 minutes of the second half saw the two squads jousting for momentum as the Wasps kept the Generals' lead to four points or less. With 9:20 on the left to play and the score tied, 39-39, W&L went on a 12-0 run, which it pushed to 21-5, to take a 60-44 lead with 1:30 left in the game.
With the margin at 16, it appeared as if the contest was decided but Emory & Henry swarmed back with a 15-1 scoring spurt over the next 55 seconds closing the gap to 61-59 with 35 seconds to play. The Wasps hit a trio of three-pointers during the stretch highlighted by back-to-back treys by freshman guard Chloe Harris (Bristol, Va.) and sophomore guard Megan Jacoby (Richmond, Va.).
Faced with a one-possession game, Washington and Lee hit four-of-six free throws in the last 28 seconds to hold on for the 65-61 victory.
The Generals placed four players in double figures led by Shelbi Hendricks with a game-high 15 points and 10 rebounds. Paige Corvino had 13 second-half points, going 8-for-11 at the line while Emma Redding notched 11 points and seven rebounds. Annie Gauf registered 10 points and five assists as well.
As a team, W&L shot 35.2 percent (19-for-54) for the game and hit eight three-pointers. The Generals managed a 43-38 advantage on the boards but 20 turnovers including several down the stretch allowed the Wasps to get back into the game.
Emory & Henry was led by Harris' 14 points as she added three rebounds and three steals while senior guard Kristie Langley (Staley, N.C.) had 12 points prior to fouling out midway through the second half. Junior forward Karina Farr (Graham, Wash.) tallied eight points and four boards. Jacoby ended the night with five points, five rebounds and eight assists.
The Wasps responded from poor first-half shooting to go 14-for-35 (40.0%) from the field in the final 20 minutes of the game. E&H scored 28 points in the paint and hit six threes, but foul trouble for two of the team's three leading scorers forced them to go to the bench early.
Emory & Henry will return home on Tuesday for an Old Dominion Athletic Conference contest against Hollins University at 7:00 p.m.
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-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H '15