DURHAM, N.C. – Western Carolina women's basketball closed out their four-game road swing on Wednesday afternoon, falling in nonconference play at NC Central 69-58 at McDougald-McLendon Arena.
Lonasia Brewer tallied her first double-double at WCU with 17 points and 10 rebounds, finishing 7-of-12 from the floor. Brewer also added six assists to the stat sheet. Audrey Meyers chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds for the Catamounts. Tyja Beans recorded seven rebounds and Chelsea Wooten added a season-high seven assists.
Morgan Callahan led the Eagles with 15 points and nine rebounds, as Nijah Cunningham and Ray'ven Robinson both totaled 13 points for the hosts. Callahan led NCCU on the glass with nine rebounds, and Cunningham with eight boards.
The two teams went back and forth early before NC Central (3-2) scored 12 straight points, pushing the advantage to 15-3 with 3:27 to play in the first quarter. WCU scored five of the next six points before a quick four-point burst from the hosts made it 20-8 NCCU after one period of play.
Western Carolina (2-4) got off to a fast start in the second quarter with an 11-4 run in the opening stages to cut the deficit to five, 24-19 with 6:26 to play in the half. NCCU then seized control of the opening 20 minutes down the stretch with an 11-3 run that handed the Eagles a 35-22 lead at halftime.
Both teams stayed tight in the early stages of the third with the Catamounts scoring six of the first 10 points over the first two minutes of the second half. NCCU responded with a 5-2 burst, stretching its lead to a 44-30 lead at the 6:34 third-quarter mark. WCU answered the Eagles burst with an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to under double-digits at 46-38 with 4:27 to play in the third. The two teams scored five points in the final two minutes for an eight-point margin 51-43 after three.
NCCU opened the fourth quarter fast with a 10-4 run out of the gates that allowed the hosts to extend the advantage back out to 14, 61-47 with 5:47 to go in the game. WCU battled back with a 9-4 spurt over the next 2:40 to again reduce the deficit to single-digits at nine, 65-56, with 3:07 to play. However, the Catamounts could not cut into the lead down the stretch as the hosts claimed the 69-56 win on Wednesday afternoon.
NC Central posted a 43.9% (29-of-66) shooting performance as the Catamounts shot 40% (26-of-65) from the floor. Both teams struggled from beyond the arc as the Catamounts made three deep shots, and NCCU connected on just one. Neither team shot well from the line as the Eagles went 10-of-22 and WCU was 3-of-10. The hosts had a slim lead on the glass by four, 44-40, as WCU totaled 19 assists compared to nine from the Eagles. NCCU controlled the paint battle, outscoring the Catamounts 52-36 with a 17-5 edge in second-chance points. WCU had a 26-12 lead in bench points, led by 17 from Brewer.
The Catamounts return to Cullowhee for the first of four straight home dates beginning on Tuesday, Nov. 28, as WCU hosts Georgia State at 7 p.m. from Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center. The matchup with the Panthers starts a stretch of nine of the next 11 games at home for the Catamounts. The Georgia State game will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats on CatamountSports.com.
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