CAMPBELLSVILLE, KY –The No. 18 Bethel Lady Wildcats staged a big second half comeback against No. 24 Pikeville Saturday afternoon in the SSAC/MSC Challenge in Campbellsville , Kentucky but in the end fell short falling to the Lady Bears 61-52.
Bethel fell behind early and trailed 19-9 at the end of the first quarter. UPike extended the lead to as many as 16 at one point of the second quarter leading 30-14. A three by Shamon Pearson followed by a three by Jasmine Whittemore pulled Bethel to within 30-20 late in the second stanza. The Lady Bears went on to lead 35-22 at the half.
Bethel opened the third quarter with a 6-0 run and climbed back in the game. The Lady Cats continued to show heart and battled their way to within 37-35 with a 13-2 run in the quarter. They eventually trailed 43-40 at the end of the third quarter. Three times Bethel had three-pointers to tie but unfortunately none dropped and the Lady Cats could not tie or take the lead in the game. UPike outscored Bethel 18-12 in the final quarter and improved top 10-3 on the season. It was their fourth straight win. The Lady Wildcats dropped to 5-5 on the year.
The Lady Bears shot 38 percent hitting 22-of-57 shots from the field. Bethel was 19-of-63 shots for 30 percent. UPIKE hit eight three's while Bethel hit six on the night. Bethel won the battle of the boards 41-38. Both teams had 16 turnovers each.
Devin Conley led Pikeville 20 points. Kelah Eldridge and Taylor McGlade each had 11 points. Shamon Pearson led Bethel with 20 points.
It was not a good day for the SSAC. Shawnee State defeated Martin Methodist 94-61. Campbellsville beat Mobile 65-49.
Coach Chris Nelson commented, "It was a tough loss for our team tonight versus a very good Pikeville team. We got off to a bad start and missed to many point blank lay-ups and gave up to many points in the first period but credit our ladies for staying the course and settling down in the second and playing better defense. Pikeville is very aggressive and has ability to get hot and you have to guard and contest every possession. Our Achilles heel is still figuring out how we can score on a consistent basis, but a lot of that has to do with playing these types of teams and it forces us to learn and grow from it. The good news is we are still working and staying the course on things we can control and that is our effort on the defensive end and the rebound war. We will regroup and get ready for a top notch Shawnee State team."
Bethel meets Shawnee State at 1 p.m. CST Sunday. The Countdown to Tip-off Show begins at 12:30 p.m. on WEIO, 100.9 and at www.thefarmradio.com.
Saturday, December 17th
94 Shawnee State- Martin Methodist 61
61 UPike –Bethel 52
65 Campbellsville –Mobile 49
Sunday, December 18th
Game 4: Bethel vs. Shawnee State 1:00 p.m.
Game 5: Mobile vs. UPike 3:30 p.m.
Game 6: Martin Methodist vs. Campbellsville 6:00 p.m.
Monday, December 19th
Game 7: Shawnee State vs. Mobile 12:00 p.m.
Game 8: UPike vs. Martin Methodist 2:30 p.m.
Game 9: Campbellsville vs. Bethel 5:00 p.m.
