Shenandoah Upsets Marlins in ODAC First Round

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – No. 11 Shenandoah University jumped out to an early 26-16 lead, and held off a valiant No. 6 Virginia Wesleyan comeback to secure an 82-73 upset victory in the first round of the ODAC tournament Tuesday night.

The Hornets were the only lower seed to win a first round contest Tuesday night.

Three-point shooting was a huge reason while the Marlins were able to win the regular season matchup by a score of 79-61. Amanda Gerni knocked down 10 3-pointers in that contest. The Hornets held Virginia Wesleyan to just 6-19 (31.6%) shooting from long distance on Tuesday.

Kirstyn Arcata had a big first quarter for Shenandoah, scoring 14 points on 5-5 shooting, including three makes from beyond the arc.

The Marlins responded after trailing 26-16 after the first quarter. NiAsia Caldwell started the quarter with a layup before Jayla Harris drove the paint for two more points to cut the deficit to 26-20. Harris scored the next 10 points in the game to garner a four point lead for the Marlins at the conclusion of the 10-0 run.

Shenandoah was only able to muster two points in the first seven minutes, due to a combination of VWC defense and a minor injury to Arcata that forced her to the bench until the third quarter.

The Marlins went up by as much as five points in the second quarter. Mia Moore made a baseline jumper as time expired to cut the Marlin lead to just two points, 39-37, while swinging momentum the way of the Hornets.

The lead changed twice in the third, but the Marlins were still in front by a score of 58-55 heading into the final 10 minutes of play.

Shenandoah took the lead for good early in the fourth by forcing the Marlins into three turnovers, holding the hosts to a 0-8 effort from the field. Meanwhile on the other end, the Hornets went on a 9-0 run to take a 64-58 lead with just under five minutes to play. Arcata had five points in the run while Moore added the other four.

The Marlins were able to cut the SU lead to four points, 68-64 with 2:29 to play, but the guests went on a 5-0 run to ensure the victory.

Arcata finished with 28 points for No. 11 Shenandoah (6-20) while Moore tallied 18 points to go with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds from Erin French. Arcata's seven 3-pointers ties the school record and her 70 percent shooting percentage from behind the arc is a new Shenandoah record.

Harris posted 30 points for the Marlins while Caldwell and Gerni added 12 each off the bench. It was the sixth time this season that Harris had reached the 30-point mark in a game.

Virginia Wesleyan concludes the season 13-13 with an 8-8 mark in ODAC play. Shenandoah advances to face No. 3 Emory & Henry in the ODAC Quarterfinals on Friday.