RedStorm women start fast, bury WVU-Tech

Rio Grande Sports Information
     BECKLEY, W.Va. - After a disappointing loss at home to rival Shawnee State University on Tuesday night, the University of Rio Grande's bounce back plan centered around making quick work of West Virginia University Tech.
     And that's exactly what the RedStorm did.
     Head coach David Smalley's squad built a 20-point first quarter lead and never looked back, rolling to a 95-60 rout of the Golden Bears in River States Conference action, Saturday afternoon, at the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center.
     Rio Grande, ranked No. 15 in the latest NAIA Top 25 Coaches' Poll, improved to 21-5 overall and 11-3 in league play, clinching the East Division No. 2 seed in the upcoming conference tournament in the process.
     WVU-Tech slipped to 2-23 overall and 1-13 in the RSC as a result of the loss.
     The Golden Bears enjoyed a 7-6 lead after a pair of Kennedy Hancock free throws with 7:37 left in the first quarter, but were buried by a 23-2 Rio Grande run to close the period.
     Senior Kaylee Darnell (Wheelersburg, OH) wielded the shovel for the RedStorm, going 7-for-9 from the floor overall and 3-for-3 from three-point range for 17 of her game-high 32 points in the first quarter blitz.
     Rio also scored the first five points in the second stanza for a 34-9 advantage and eventually built a 28-point halftime cushion.
     WVU-Tech, which was playing without two players due to their role in a late-game fracas during Thursday's loss to Alice Lloyd College - in addition to head coach Kenny Osborne, who was home with the flu - never got any closer the rest of the afternoon.
     The RedStorm's lead reached as many as 35 points with just over six minutes left in the third quarter before settling at 26 points heading to the final period.
     The cushion ballooned to 35 points again with the game's final margin of victory.
     In addition to Darnell's big day, Rio Grande also got 14 points and 10 assists from senior Azyiah Williams (Ripley, OH), 14 points and nine rebounds from senior Lexi Woods (Waverly, OH) and a 13-point, 15-rebound, five-block effort from freshman Jasmine Jordan (Ashland, KY).
     The RedStorm finished 38-for-81 from the floor (46.9%) and 14-for-16 at the foul line (87.5%), while also outrebounding their hosts, 60-28.
     Tech shot just 35.7 percent overall (25-for-70) and 21.7 percent from distance (5-for-23), while only making it to the free throw line just six times.
     Hancock led the Golden Bears with 12 points and five rebounds, while Cadence Stewart had 12 points of her own and Avery Lucas finished with 10.
     Alexis Sexton added six assists in a losing cause.
     Weather permitting, Rio Grande is scheduled to return to action on Tuesday night at Alice Lloyd College.
     Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.