MARIETTA, Ohio – The Marietta College women's basketball team won the opening game of the 35th annual Jim Meagle Holiday Tournament sponsored by BSN Sports. The Pioneers defeated North Carolina Wesleyan, 85-74. With the win the Pioneers improve to 4-5 overall and the loss drops the Battling Bishops to 7-3 overall.
Head Coach
Kole Vivian said, "Alexis was unbelievable today. She was able to dominate on both ends. With us being pretty young, we need her to step up and she did just that. That was also Devin's best defensive game she has played this year."
Marietta opened the game on a quick 6-2 run. The fast start was sparked by a pair of buckets from
Alexis Enochs (Beverly, Ohio/Fort Frye). The Pioneers continued to play well and led 11-5 behind a layup from
Bailee Brooks (Akron, Ohio/Cuyahoga Falls). North Carolina Wesleyan battled back with an 8-0 run to take a 16-14 edge with just over four minutes to play in the quarter. Late in the first quarter an 8-0 Marietta run propelled them to a 22-18 advantage with 11 seconds to play in the quarter. The run was started by a three pointer from MacKenzie Campbell, and capped by a pair of foul shots from
Jill Congrove (Circleville, Ohio/Logan Elm). The Battling Bishops hit a jumper at the buzzer, but Marietta led 22-20 to open the second quarter.
The Pioneers extended a 26-20 lead behind a pair of buckets by Brooks and
Devin Hefner (Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg South). North Carolina Wesleyan responded with a 9-0 run to tie the game at 29 points apiece at the 4:47 mark of the second quarter. The teams battled for the remainder of the half and the Battling Bishops entered the intermission ahead, 39-37.
After Brooks opened the half with a layup, North Carolina Wesleyan responded with a 5-0 run to take a 44-39 edge. The quick run was halted by a pair of foul shots from Hefner. The Battling Bishops continued to play well and held a 52-46 edge. Marietta answered with an 11-0 run that saw them reclaim a 57-52 advantage. The run saw four different players score as Hefner,
Kate Liston (Little Hocking, Ohio/Warren Local),
Camille Cummins (MIddlefield, Ohio/Cardinal), and Enochs all scored. After a three from North Carolina Wesleyan the Pioneers went on a 10-0 run that saw them stretch out a 67-55 edge, with just under two minutes to play in the third quarter. The run was highlighted by five points from Enochs. Marietta entered the final frame ahead, 72-60.
The Battling Bishops opened the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run and trimmed the Pioneers edge to 72-65, which forced a Marietta timeout with 6:40 minutes to play in the game. North Carolina Wesleyan continued to cut into the Marietta advantage and trailed 72-69 to force a Pioneers timeout. Out of the timeout, Marietta went on a 10-0 run that saw them regain a double-digit margin, 82-69. The run was sparked by a three from Congrove and capped by free throws from Congrove. The Pioneers closed out the game and won, 85-74.
Marietta was led by Enoch as she notched her second double-double of the season. Enochs poured in a career high 29 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Hefner added 19 points and dished out four assists. Cummins set a career high in rebounds as she pulled down 10 in the game.
Marietta will return to the hardwood Sunday (Dec. 30) when they host Carnegie Mellon in the championship game of the 35th annual Jim Meagle Holiday Tournament sponsored by BSN Sports.
Fans can follow all of the Pioneer teams all year long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
