Box Score Slow start proves to be downfall for Lady Marauders in loss to Virginia State

SALEM, West Virginia - The Central State Lady Marauders' slow start proved to be costly in Friday's 67-50 loss to Virginia State University in the opening game of the Joe Manchin Classic.

CSU was never able to fully recover after being outscored 25-5 in the first quarter. The Lady Marauders converted just 2 of 8 field goals in the first 10 minutes of play while the Lady Trojans hit 5 of 8 three point shots to build their 20-point lead. VSU remained comfortably ahead for the majority of the second quarter and took a 37-18 lead into halftime.

The Lady Marauder finally broke out of a bad shooting spell and went on a 14-2 run to close out the third quarter and cutting the Virginia State lead down to 44-35 heading into the final ten minutes of play. While the CSU offense began to show life, the defense held Virginia State shooters to just 1 made field goal in the quarter.

Back-to-back three pointers from Sierra Harley and Tamara Sellers helped cut the deficit down to 5 at the 8:07 mark of the fourth quarter. Soon after that, Harley picked up her fourth personal foul and made her way to the bench. While Harley sat out, VSU scored 10 quick unanswered points to increase their lead to 56-41 with 7:06 left to play. The Lady Trojans remained in control until the final whistle to claim the 17-point victory.

Perimeter shooting proved to be crucial in the outcome as VSU had 11 makes from beyond the arc compared to CSU's 5 three pointers.

VSU's Nandi Taylor led all scorers with 16 points. Joy Hickman finished with 11 points and a game-high 7 rebounds as the Trojans celebrated their fifth straight win while improving to 6-1 overall.

Mustafa Notter filled the stat sheet for CSU with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Destinee Russell finished with 10 points. Harley finished with a game-high 6  assists.



The Lady Marauders will play their final game of the Joe Manchin Classic on Saturday against Bluefield State College (0-8). The game is scheduled to start at noon,

Fans can follow the game live on the following links:

Watch - http://siutigerpride.com/watch/

Live Stats - http://www.sidearmstats.com/salemiu/wbball/

For additional details on the Joe Manchin Classic, please visit - http://www.siutigerpride.com/…/20…/12/5/JoeManchin_2016.aspx