Women's Basketball Outlasts Cougars in Home Opener

Bethany, W.Va – The Bethany College women's basketball held their home opener against the Chatham Cougars in a Presidents Athletics Conference (PAC) matchup inside Hummel Field House Tuesday evening.  In a hard fought defensive effort, the Bison grinded out a 61-56 victory over the Cougars. The Green and White were led by three freshmen with Makenzee Mason leading the way with 15 points, followed by Bella Skobel with 13 points, and Nikki Bradbury with 11 points.   

GAME OVERVIEW

The first stanza of play was high scoring and a back and forth battle between the two teams. The quarter saw three lead changes with Bethany coming out ahead after back-to-back threes off the hand of Nikki Bradbury in the final seconds of the quarter.

In the second quarter was the opposite of the first with both defenses settling in. The Bison held the Cougars to seven points. A Molly Grayson floater gave the Bison a 26-24 lead heading into the intermission.

The scoring picked up in the second half with Bethany outscoring Chatham, 35-32. The Cougars clawed back to pull ahead 39-38 ending the third stanza, but the Cougars wouldn't hold the lead long, with the Bison climbing back and regaining the lead. The fourth quarter saw a see-saw battle with three lead changes with the Bison taking a narrow lead with 3:29 left in the game after a Nikki Bradbury layup. The Green and White held the lead for the remainder of the period.

The Cougars attempted to overcome the Bison after a three pointer to make the game a one-possession game with .19 seconds left, but the Bison capitalized at the charity stripe and huge defensive stop where the Bison forced a five-second violation to seal the deal. Bella Skobel put the icing on the cake with a layup at the buzzer.

IN THE BOX SCORE

• Makenzee Mason – 15 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
• Bella Skobel – 13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
• Nikki Bradbury – 11 points, 2 assists
• Kelsie Meintel – 8 points, 9 rebounds
• Molly Grayson – 8 points

RECORDS

Bethany College Bison – 2-2 (2-2 PAC)

Chatham Cougars – 0-2 (0-2 PAC)

UP NEXT 

Bethany College women's basketball will travel north to Beaver Falls, Pa to face Geneva College for their last regular season road matchup. Tip-off set for 7 pm.