Tribe defeats Elon second time in same month

COURTESY IMAGE // TRIBE ATHLETICS

Friday, Feb. 24, William and Mary (15-12,10-6 CAA) defeated Elon (8-19, 4-12 CAA) 69-53 at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Virginia. 

On Friday, Feb. 10, William and Mary defeated Elon in an 84-74 overtime victory. In this previous matchup, starters graduate student guard Sydney Wagner and senior forward Bre Bellamy were unavailable due to illness. In Friday night’s rematch, the Tribe was fortunate to have both players back in the lineup.

The first quarter was tightly contested between both teams, with the score tied 18-18 at the end of the period. Wagner led the team with 10 points in the quarter, accounting for more than half of the team’s offense. Freshman guard Raven Preston led Elon with five points and junior forward Ajia James added four points.

The Tribe started pulling away in the second quarter, outscoring Elon 16-7. William and Mary’s points in this period were distributed well amongst its players, with scoring contributions from Bellamy, graduate student guard Riley Casey, junior forward Rebekah Frisby-Smith, and freshman guard Alexa Mikeska.

In the third quarter, both teams traded baskets early. Graduate student guard Lenaejha Evans led Elon with three quick field goals. The Tribe answered by going on an 8-0 run that included back-to-back threes from Casey. The quarter ended with the Green and Gold leading Elon, 50-41.

In the fourth period, the Tribe extended their lead even further. With eight more points from Wagner, William and Mary’s offense was relentless from the field. Elon’s defense failed to hinder the Tribe offense, resulting in a Tribe win, 69-53.

This was a record-breaking game for multiple players on the Tribe. Wagner scored her 1,317th point of her career, tying her for 11th place in William and Mary’s all-time career scoring records. Casey, with her season total of 484 points so far, is now in ninth place for most points per season in William and Mary history.

After losing to Towson 59-66 on Feb. 17, this victory gives the Tribe momentum as they finish out the season and prepare for the Colonial Athletic Association tournament. Since this matchup against Elon, William and Mary picked up an away loss against Drexel on Feb. 26, 55-47 and an away win against Monmouth on March 2, 70-60. The Tribe will play their final regular season game against Hofstra on Saturday, March. 4 at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Virginia.

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