INSTITUTE, W.VA. – West Virginia State Women's Basketball turned in a dominating performance Monday in Walker Convocation Center, easing past Mountain East Conference foe West Virginia Wesleyan 79-45.

The Yellow Jackets improve to 11-4 overall and 7-3 in league play, while the Bobcats slip to 2-11 on the year and 1-10 in the MEC.

Junior Shelby Harmeyer lead all scorers with a season-high 18 points, also a career-best. Harmeyer also pulled in four rebounds and added three steals. Classmate Ashley Davis impressed in the fourth quarter, swishing four three-pointers to finish the contest with 14 points, also a season-best for her. Davis had a pair of steals and a pair of rebounds to accompany her performance.

Fellow third-year Destiny Fields posted 11 points, and senior Alana Kramer rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10. Fields hauled in six boards, while freshman Emyah Fortenberry led the way with seven.  

The Yellow Jackets were productive in the paint with 32 points, but found much success with 42 points off turnovers.

State opened up running the floor, starting things with a 9-0 run through the first two minutes of play.  WVSU was stalled after that, registering just two points upon reaching the 5:20 mark.

The Bobcats secured five consecutive points and then turned in a 7-0 run to tie and take the lead of the contest, going up 12-11 heading into the media timeout. Following the huddle, a layup from Caroline Scott put WVSU back on top, then aided by Fortenberry's own put back to go up 15-12.

A jumper from Harmeyer and a trey from junior Hannah Shriver in the final two minutes of the quarter gave the Yellow Jackets some extra cushion, stamping the first frame with a 21-14 mark.

While State entered the second quarter with the lead, it was a back-and-forth affair for nearly the first five minutes, as neither team could build momentum. It wasn't until 5:47 left in the half and back-to-back layups from Shriver and Kramer, followed by a jumper from Harmeyer, that the Yellow Jackets were able to progress into a run, extending their lead to 31-18.

A Harmeyer trey sealed the half for WVSU, sending State into the locker room with a 10-point advantage at 34-24. Harmeyer tallied 10 points in the first two quarters.

The third quarter began in much similar fashion as the second, with both squads trading baskets and neither building momentum. State remained ahead by 10 after a Fields jumper, and then continued to add to their lead after Fields made good on a free throw and Davis connected for a layup to push State to a 41-28 mark.

Wesleyan pressured with back-to-back baskets, trimming the gap to nine points at 41-32, but the threat was quickly doused after a 7-0 run from State, capped by a three from hot-shooting Harmeyer.

Harmeyer continued to control the court, signaling the end of the third quarter with a trey that pushed the Yellow Jackets to their biggest lead of the contest at 53-33.

The Bobcats used a 7-2 run as the final frame began to narrow the gap, but State surged on the fire shooting of Davis, who connected for back-to-back three pointers twice, hauling in four during the quarter in part of a stellar 17-0 run as they finished the frame 79-45.

UP NEXT
WVSU remains at home, welcoming the Falcons of Fairmont State for a Wednesday tip at 5:30 p.m. Live stats and video will be available.