Facing Walsh for the third time this season, the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers fell to the Cavaliers 81-50 in the G-MAC semi-finals on Friday night.
With the win Walsh (26-3, 20-2 G-MAC) advances to play Ashland in the G-MAC championship game tomorrow while KWC (19-10, 15-6 G-MAC) will wait until Sunday to hear whether they have made the NCAA tournament.
Shiya Hoosier opened things up quickly for the Panthers, driving through the teeth of the Cavalier defense to give Wesleyan a 2-0 lead just 11 seconds in. Two straight buckets from Corina Conley and Hoosier midway through the quarter tied things up at 8 with 5:26 to play in the first. With 1:24 left in the opening frame Shaylee McDonald drove through the lane for two to give Wesleyan a 13-12 lead, an advantage they would hold until the end of the quarter.
Thanks to buckets from Emma Johnson, Cali Nolot, Jordyn Barga, KWC opened up the second quarter on a 6-1 run to extend their lead to 19-13 with 6:16 to go in the half. Unfortunately for the Panthers, Walsh would catch fire, closing the quarter on a 27-5 run to take a 40-24 lead heading into the locker room.
Despite KWC’s best attempts, Walsh outscored Wesleyan 21-17 in the third and 20-9 in the fourth quarter to take the game by the 81-50 score.
2nd Team All-G-MAC honoree Nolot led the Panthers with 14 points, followed by Barga’s double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds. Reeva Hammelman and McDonald each tallied two assists, while Nolot recorded two steals.
Kentucky Wesleyan shot 19-58 (32.8%) from the field and 2-21 (9.5%) from behind the arc. Walsh shot 32-65 (49.2%) from the field and 9-24 (37.5%) from three. Turnovers were costly for the Panthers, as they committed 19 while forcing just 11 from Walsh.
KWC currently sits at 8th in the region and will away\ the NCAA’s decision to see if they have qualified for the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will take place at ncaa.com on Sunday at 9 p.m.
