MORGANTOWN, WV–Five players scored in double-figures as No. 25 West Virginia downed visiting NJIT, 95-50, on Sunday afternoon at the WVU Coliseum.
The Mountaineers (2-0) were led by Katrina Pardee led the way with 22 points. Tynice Martin finished with 18 points while freshman Kari Niblack finished with 17 points.
NJIT (0-3) finished with just two players scoring 10 or more points – Ellyn Stoll (14) and Kelly Guarino (12). Highlanders Jillian Libby and Milena Bajic grabbed five rebounds each.
Guarino got NJIT on the scoreboard first with a three-pointer for the Highlanders lone lead of the game. The Mountaineers quickly responded with a three-point basket by senior Naomi Davenport. West Virginia proceeded to go on a 9-0 run, before junior Milena Bajic scored a layup to stop the onslaught. West Virginia took a 14-5 score into the first media timeout with 6:31 remaining in the opening quarter. Davenport led the way with seven points.
The Mountaineers finished the first quarter shooting 11-for-19, and was led by Daveport and junior Katrina Pardee. Pardee finished the quarter shooting 3-for-3 from the field with one three-point basket. NJIT finished the quarter shooting 4-for-12 as Guarino led the way with six points (2-for-3 from field).
West Virginia began to pull away in the second quarter. The Mountaineers went on an 11-1 over 6:14 to take a 40-18 lead with 4:25 remaining. Woodbridge, New Jersey native and senior Theresa Ekhelar scored five points to lead the way. The 11-1 run was halted by a Guarino three-point basket with less than two minutes remaining in the quarter. West Virginia took a 46-21 lead into halftime. The Mountaineers shot 50% (18-for-36) from the field in the half, while NJIT shot just 20% (6-for-29) from the field.
The third quarter continued to tilt in West Virginia's favor as the Mountaineers opened up with a 12-4 run before the media timeout was called with 4:28 remaining in the quarter. Redshirt junior Tynice Martin scored 11 points before the timeout, shooting 4-for-5 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free-throw line. NJIT as a team was shooting just 2-for-6 from the field. West Virginia took a 71-34 lead into the final quarter.
West Virginia outscored NJIT 24-16 in the final quarter. Stoll finished the game strong as she ended up with 14 points (4-for-10 from the field and 3-9 from three-point range).
NJIT will resume play next Saturday, November 17, when the Highlanders head to the Palestra to play Penn. Game time is scheduled for 2:00 pm.
Write-up courtesy Michael Ventola
