Women's Basketball | 12/18/2019 3:38:00 PM

Box Score     CLEVELAND – The Walsh University women's basketball team used an extended first-half surge to break open a tight game here Wednesday and went on to hand West Liberty a 96-74 setback in a non-conference game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
    Coach Kyle Cooper's Hilltoppers (5-6) weathered an early storm by the powerful Cavaliers (10-2) and fought back to forge an 11-11 deadlock on a Corinne Thomas layup at 5:35 of the opening quarter.
    Walsh's Lexie Scarton missed a short jumper at the other end but the hosts' Mayci Sales scored on a putback, giving Walsh the lead for good and igniting the lengthy run that proved to be the difference in the game.
    The aggressive Cavalier defense held WLU to just one field goal – a Morgan Brunner 3-pointer – over the next 10 minutes of game action while shifting into overdrive on the offensive end of the court.
    As the second quarter clock ticked past the 6-minute mark, Jamie Halloran capped what had become a 27-4 run when she grabbed a rebound and sailed coast-to-coast for a layup to give Walsh what proved to be an insurmountable 38-15 lead.
    The Cavaliers settled for a 45-25 advantage at intermission and took a 75-50 lead into the fourth quarter as the Lady Hilltoppers struggled to find the range in the cavernous arena, which also serves as the home floor for the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers.
    The Black and Gold held Walsh without a 3-pointer on the day (0-for-6) but couldn't take advantage, shooting just 35 percent (26-of-74) from the floor and 33 percent (11-of-33) from the 3-point arc. It marked the third straight game WLU had been held below 40 percent shooting.
    Thomas and Taylor Johnson paced West Liberty with 13 points each while Brunner added 11 points and Olivia Belknap finished with 10 tallies.
    Quionche Carter had a game-high 27 points to go along with 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers while Mayci Sales had a huge game in the paint with 22 points, 17 rebounds and 5 blocked shots.
    The Lady Hilltoppers will try to get back on track Friday when they travel to Canton, Ohio for a 1 p.m. tipoff against Malone.