Women's Basketball | 12/11/2019 7:41:00 PM

Box Score     CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The West Liberty University women's basketball team couldn't climb all the way back from a 22-point second half deficit as Charleston held on for a 78-68 victory here Wednesday night at the Wehrle Center.
    Coach Kyle Cooper's Hilltoppers (5-4, 2-3) struggled to find the range in the early going and the host Golden Eagles (7-2, 4-1) – who improved to 5-0 at home this season – took full advantage.
    Charleston came out with all guns blazing, converting two quick turnovers into a 6-0 lead less than 50 seconds after the opening tip, and kept right on rolling. The Golden Eagles carried a 24-15 lead into the second quarter and padded the margin to 46-28 after a dominant first half.
    When the smoke had cleared, the hosts had shot better than 60 percent from the floor in the first two quarters while forcing 12 turnovers and holding WLU to just 1-of-9 shooting from the 3-point arc.
    Golden Eagle head coach Becky Burke was whistled for back-to-back technical fouls and ejected at the end of the half, allowing West Liberty to open the third quarter with four consecutive free throws.
    Morgan Brunner, who leads the nation in free throw shooting, splashed home all four charity tosses and Olivia Belknap followed with a 3-pointer from the corner as the Hilltoppers closed the gap to 46-35 in the first minute of play.
    Unfortunately for the Black and Gold, Charleston answered with a 13-2 run to open up the biggest lead of the night, 59-37, midway through the quarter, but the Hilltoppers still refused to fold.
    West Liberty steadily chipped away at the deficit coming down the stretch. When Corinne Thomas hit two free throws to cap an 11-0 WLU surge, the visitors had the margin back down to single digits, 67-58, with 2:35 still to play.
    Trinity Palacio hit a foul line jumper to restore Charleston's double-digit lead, 69-58, with 2:20 to go and the hosts were able to close things out at the foul line.
    After being held to 6 points in the first half, Brunner poured in 17 of her game-high 23 points after intermission to help fuel the Hilltopper comeback. Thomas, a true freshman guard, hit double-figures off the bench for the second straight game with 14 points.
    Brooklyn Pannell paced five double figure scorers for Charleston with 16 points while reigning MEC Player of the Week Anna Hayton passed the 1,000-point career milestone, finishing with 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
    The West Liberty women return home on Saturday to host West Virginia State. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. at the ASRC.