Lady Bobcats Lose to In-Conference Foe

The Frostburg State women’s basketball team fell just short to Capital Athletic Conference foe Salisbury, 69-60, Saturday afternoon at the Bobcat Arena.

Junior Kirsten Rayner led the Bobcats with 20 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 58% in 40 minutes, while junior Kache Fields and freshman Megan Kelly each chipped in 13 points.

The Bobcats worked hard in preparation for their in-conference rival. Frostburg was buzzed all week throughout campus for the heightened matchup between the Bobcats and the Sea Gulls.

To start the game, FSU jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead early in the first quarter, and the Bobcats held onto that lead until Salisbury’s Mary McDonagh hit a three with just 1:07 left in the quarter. The Sea Gulls (5-1, 0-3 CAC) led by just two points, 19-17, heading into the second quarter where Salisbury dominated, outscoring the Bobcats 19-8.

After a couple of quick timeouts, FSU locked down on defense in order to stop the bleeding. Coach Saunders noticed her team becoming desperate and had to make quick, game changing decisions to switch up the tempo.

The Bobcat defense held the Gulls scoreless for 2:17, but that intensity did not last long.

Salisbury led by as many as 21 points, 48-27 in the third quarter, but the Bobcats never gave up. Two jumpers from Courtney Young, one from Kirsten Rayner and two good free throws from Kache Fields cut the deficit to 15, 50-35, but the Gulls held the advantage until the final quarter, 52-35.

Even with the big deficit, the Frostburg family stood behind the fighting Bobcats all the way to the end, adding encouragement, life and purpose to their comeback.

The Bobcats kept chipping away and a 12-5 run in the middle of the quarter brought the Bobcats within 12, 65-53, with 1:47 on the clock. With time winding down, the Bobcats outscored the Sea Gulls 7-3 but the late rally wasn’t enough as Salisbury held on to win, 69-60, at the final buzzer.

The Bobcats needed just a few more minutes and a couple more points to pull out this win. While the whole Frostburg community wanted this win badly against Salisbury, fans appreciated the fight. The drive and dedication from every player that appeared on the court, that contributed in any way, from rebounding, scoring, running the floor, making the perfect pass, were all needed and applauded for all of their efforts.

Furthermore, Salisbury is a great team and has a good season. Frostburg thanks Salisbury for an exciting game, but the Bobcats are not defeated after this loss; this was just another obstacle that the Bobcats are using to turn around their season for the better.

The Bobcats return to action on Sunday, December 20 when they play host to Randolph College. Tip off for the non-conference matchup will be at 3:00 pm.