VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. –Averett University women's basketball played at Virginia Wesleyan University on Wednesday night, with both teams looking to notch a first win in conference play.
DaiShaundria Giggetts' second half was one to remember, notching a career-high 29 points, but the late comeback fell out of reach, as the Cougars fell late to the Marlins, 66-58.
Out of the gates, relentless defense was the theme, with the game's first field goal not made until under the nine-minute mark. Virginia Wesleyan made a layup, and Averett obliged with making a jumper directly after. Back-and-forth, the Cougars and Marlins refused to let up, constantly trading baskets until the home side had a slight three-point advantage before the first quarter concluded.
Leading scorer for Averett, Giggetts ensured that her squad wouldn't be behind by much, driving in for a layup, as the visitors trailed 11-10 at the end of quarter one.
Virginia Wesleyan opened the second on a 9-0 run to go double Averett's tally. The Cougars rallied slightly, closing the contest's deficit to seven, down 22-15, but back-to-back layups by Marlin Keagan Schwab further distanced the home team from Averett. Virginia Wesleyan held the visitors to just three points over rest of the quarter, with Giggetts' late field goal and foul-line makes from
Zariia America giving Averett slight momentum heading into the halftime break. The home Marlins led 34-22.
America paced all Cougars with six points and five rebounds thus far. Rebound was as close as could be between the conference foes, tied at 20 apiece. The outright conference leader in steals, Giggetts continued to add, with one swipe.
Giggetts and defense were synonymous to Averett's 8-0 run to kick-start the third period. The aforementioned freshman was responsible for all of the Cougars' points, while forcing three Marlin turnovers. The visitors were in reaching distance, as Virginia Wesleyan's advantage shrunk to just four, 36-32.
Both teams entered the 40-point threshold, but it was the home Marlins who held serve, and eventually crossed over 50 with a Maesyn Blalock layup with under 15 seconds to go in the third. The distance between both teams was nearly identical before entering the fourth, with Virginia Wesleyan up 51-40. Giggetts amassed her point tally in just a period, setting a career-high with 13 in the quarter.
The Marlins increased their lead to as much as 16 with an offensive run in the fourth, but once more, Giggetts and company rallied back with time running down. The Cougars got within two 3-pointers at 64-58 with under two minutes, but the comeback ran short at games' end. The Marlins sunk a layup, defended multiple attempts from beyond the arc, and came out with their first conference win of the season, as Averett was defeated 66-58.
With her career high highlighted, Giggetts also had a team-high nine rebounds, and two steals.
Emma Jones sunk a trio of three-pointers, and
Jaa Brown kept her assisting game on point with four.
Both teams were equal in the steal and block margin, tied for eight and two, respectively. The Cougar bench helped in the rally, combining for 17 points.
The Cougars head down south to Greenville, South Carolina for their last non-conference tilt of the campaign on Saturday, Jan. 18, facing off against Bob Jones University. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
