VIRGINIA BEACH -- Dave Macedo was more curious than anything as his Virginia Wesleyan College Marlins entered Monday's contest with the Eagles of Bridgewater College.
He was wondering how his seniorless team would respond 48 hours after suffering their first loss of the season in 17 games.
Macedo started to see what he wanted to see about 10 minutes into the first half before an almost packed house at the Jane P. Batten Student Center. Back-to-back jumpers by rookie DJ Woodmore (Virginia Beach/Landstown) and junior Donald Vaughn (Woodbridge, Va./Dumfries Potomac) gave the Marlins the lead and started a 21-4 run that ignited the crowd and put the host team in command.
Virginia Wesleyan rode the spurt to a 45-25 halftime advantage and an 86-59 Old Dominion Athletic Conference victory that eased the disappointment of Saturday's road loss. VWC, currently ranked No. 2 nationally, is now 17-1 overall and 8-1 in the conference.
Ronnie Thomas (Roanoke, Va./Patrick Henry) scored consecutive baskets to keep the Eagles (6-12, 2-7) within a point before the Marlins turned back-to-back Bridgewater turnovers into points, including a crowd-rousing dunk by Vaughn that gave VWC a 25-18 lead.
Bridgewater head coach Don Burgess called a timeout to regroup the Eagles, but Virginia Wesleyan only picked up where it left off minutes later. Junior Ed Roberts (Chesapeake, Va./Deep Creek) kept the home crowd on its feet by ripping through a pair of triples that helped create a 34-16 lead.
Virginia Wesleyan ended the half with an 11-2 run, highlighted by a triple from sophomore Chris Astorga (Suffolk, Va./Virginia Beach Cape Henry) and another Vaughn dunk en route to the 45-25 halftime lead.
Bridgewater never got closer than 19 points in the second half, while Virginia Wesleyan extended its lead to 33 points on several occasions, before Macedo emptied his deep, talented bench. Eighteen Marlins played in the second half, which included big threes from sophomore Chris Teasley (Newport News, Va./Menchville)and Woodmore, and electrifying dunks from Teasley, Woodmore and junior Ali Brown (Hampton, Va./Kecoughtan).
VWC hit 35 field goals, including eight triples. Vaughn connected on 9-of-12 shots and scored a game-high 18 points to go with his game-high nine rebounds. Teasley finished with 16 points, hitting 6-of-10 shots, Astorga added 12 points, and Woodmore scored 11 points.
Sophomore Tre' Ford (Falls Church, Va./J.E.B. Stuart) led an impressive floor game with six assists. The Marlins recorded 18 overall. VWC also finished with a 48-32 advantage on the backboards.
Kyle Hammond (Bluefield, W.Va./Bluefield) led Bridgewater with 14 points, hitting 6-of-10 shots overall. Cody Griffith (Pembroke, Va./Giles County) added 11 points and Thomas finished with nine.
Virginia Wesleyan returns to competition on Wednesday, Jan. 26, traveling to Harrisonburg, Va. to face the Royals of Eastern Mennonite University at 7 p.m.