Sports
Rio Grande Looks To Stay Perfect Against West Virginia State
By: McKennah Robinson
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The Rio Grande women’s basketball team is hoping to extend its win streak to six against NCAA Division II West Virginia State on Tuesday, Nov. 19. A 6-0 start would mark the best start for the RedStorm since the 2010-11 season.
Rio Grande is carrying energy over from its 81-73 tournament championship win in their own Bevo Francis Invitational Tournament against West Virginia Tech. The victory was led by freshman center Brooke Marcum, junior guard Brianna Thomas and sophomore forward Sarah Bonar, who have been some of the frontrunners for the RedStorm since the beginning of the season.
Marcum recorded her second double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday’s game, with help from Thomas, who put up 15 points, five assists, and four steals.
Bonar has had explosive statistics throughout the season, which has earned her the credit of leading the team in both points and rebounds, with 18.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Thomas has also been at the top of the team’s statistics, handing out 6.4 assists per game and averaging nearly five steals per game.
West Virginia State is entering Tuesday’s play with a mere 1-1 record compared to the RedStorm’s 5-0. The Yellow Jackets have yet to play since their last game on Nov. 9, giving Rio Grande the advantage in season experience.
The leading ladies from the opposing Yellow Jackets are senior guards Lexy Carson, who has already earned the season’s first Mountain East Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week, India Taste, and senior forward Jordan Brock. Carson has averaged 32 points per game, while Brock and Taste have averaged 8.5 rebounds and five assists per game, respectively.
The matchup between the RedStorm and Yellow Jackets is set to tipoff at 6 p.m. in Rio Grande’s own Newt Oliver Arena on Tuesday.