WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

A rough second half for the #RV Huntington women’s basketball team led to a 66-59 loss to Robert Morris University Friday afternoon at the Saint Xavier Classic. The loss drops HU to 9-6 on the year while the Eagles improve to 7-8.

The Foresters shot over 50 percent in the first half while committing just five turnovers and limiting RMU to five offensive boards to enjoy a 36-31 lead after the opening 20 minutes. Unfortunately, it was a Jekyll and Hyde sort of afternoon for Culler and crew.

The Eagles, who entered the contest pulling down 18 offensive rebounds per outing, collected ten of their own misses in the second half to finish the day just shy of their season average. In addition to struggling to keep their opponents off the boards, HU also struggled to take care of the ball to the tune of 12 miscues. The combination was lethal for Huntington as they managed just six field goals in the final 20 minutes.

The third quarter started off promising with the Foresters jumping out to an eight-point advantage, 48-40, by the 4:35 mark but not much went right after that. Robert Morris finished out the quarter on a 10-1 run to a steal the lead at 50-49 heading into the last ten-minute segment.

A Casey Morton triple and Sarah Fryman jumper early in the fourth put HU back on top at 54-52. The Foresters clung to a one-point advantage by the midway point of the quarter but then turnovers got the best of them as they fumbled away the ball seven times to close out the game for a disappointing yet predictable ending.

Sam Hammel topped all scorers with 12 points to go along with three assists. Fryman added 11 points, five rebounds and three steals. Morton came off the bench to toss in ten points.

Shamara Glover and Anika Johnson finished with 11 and ten points respectively to pace the Eagles.

HU is back in action tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. ET to face host and 21st-ranked Saint Xavier at the Shannon Center.