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White and McNeal combine for 47 points as Rams down Red Storm.

Tim Hartin

February 9, 2013

Bluefield College’s duo of Ashley White and Teqa McNeal combined for 47 points on Saturday afternoon to lead the Rams to an 80-70 victory over Rio Grande. White scored 24 points while dishing out seven assists and grabbing eight rebounds on the afternoon, while McNeal tallied 23 points in the victory.

The Rams improve to 14-10 overall and 7-10 in Mid-South Conference play. Rio Grande drops to 6-19 on the season and 0-15 in MSC contests this season.

Monique Robson and Janee Simmons also contributed strong performances for the homestanding Rams, scoring 17 and 11 points, respectively. Simmons also ripped down a game-high 15 rebounds.

Rio Grande was led by Shardai Fountain-Morrison with 19 points. Tinesha Taylor contributed 16 points while Morgan Daniels led her team with 10 rebounds.

The teams traded baskets early, playing to a 6-6 tie through the opening 2:28 of game action. The Rams then posted a 12-2 burst to take a 10-point lead at the 13:45 mark in the first half. McNeal claimed eight points in the run, while White and Megan Tennant added a basket apiece.

Mounting a run of its own, Rio Grande responded with a 10-2 stretch of play. Taking place over just 3:44, the Red Storm pulled back within two, 20-18.

McNeal scored four of her team’s next six points, extending the lead back to six points for the Rams with less than eight minutes to play in the first half.

Bluefield outscored Rio Grande 10-9 over the final 6:47 of the first half, en route to the 36-27 halftime lead.

While the Rams quickly extended their lead to 13 points behind baskets from McNeal and Robson, Rio Grande made another run to pull back into the contest, ultimately pulling even with Bluefield, 46-46. Morrison-Fountain led the charge with eight points in the Red Storm’s 17-6 run.

Robson broke the game’s sixth and final tie with 11:12 to go in the contest, sinking her second three-pointer of the game to give the Rams a 57-54 edge, which they would not relinquish.

Rio Grande’s Noelani Woodson scored the next basket, but over the final 9:16, Bluefield outscored Rio Grande by a 21-14 margin for the victory.

Bluefield went 30-for-72 (41.7 %) from the field and shot 15-for-18 (83.3 %) from the free-throw line. Rio Grande shot 28-for-79 (35.4 %) from the field. Bluefield also held the rebound advantage, though slim, by a 49-45 margin.

The Rams return to action on the road next weekend, as they face (RV) St. Catharine’s on Thursday at 6 p.m. and (13) Georgetown, Saturday at 2 p.m.

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