Box Score BILLINGS, Mont. – The roadblock remains.
Wayland Baptist struggled putting the ball in the basket as the Flying Queens fell in the first round of the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Championships for the fourth straight year, bowing to Bethel University (Tenn.) on Thursday, 70-57.
"We played hard, we just didn't play very well," Wayland assistant coach
Melynn Hunt said.
As a result of shooting just 28 percent from the field, 15
th-ranked Wayland was held to its lowest point total of the season by the No. 18 Wildcats, whom Hunt said physically outsized the Flying Queens.
"It was just one of those days. We got really good looks, but we couldn't get anything to fall," said Hunt, who served as acting head coach since
Alesha Robertson-Ellis – due to give birth in the coming days – didn't make the trip. "If we would have shot 30, 35 percent we would have been fine. We just couldn't get anybody going."
After falling behind by as many as 13 points late in the first half, the Flying Queens pulled to within seven, 62-55, with just under three minutes left in the game. But Bethel busted a 3-pointer that started an 8-0 run that doused WBU's comeback hopes.
"We came back and made some runs at them, but I think every time we did they hit a 3," Hunt said.
The Flying Queens (25-7) end their season with a 25-7 record while the Wildcats (24-10) advance to play either second-ranked Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) (31-1) or William Penn (Iowa) (18-13) in the second round.
Wayland has now dropped its last six first-round games at nationals, having last tasted victory in 2003.
Bethel went into the game holding opponents to an average of 57 points, and that's exactly what the Wildcats did to Wayland. It was 24 points below the Flying Queens' season scoring average.
After a back-and-forth first quarter, Bethel's Brandi Goodman hit a shot with three seconds left to give the Lady Wildcats a 13-12 advantage.
Bethel led the rest of the game.
The Wildcats outscored Wayland 25-15 in the second period to lead at the half, 38-27. At the time Bethel was shooting 46 percent (13-of-28) from the field, almost double Wayland's 24 percent (9-of-37).
The Flying Queens went on a 13-4 run – fueled by a pair of 3-pointers by
Morgan Bennett and another by fellow freshman
Kendrick Clark – to cut the deficit to 48-45 with 1:42 left in the third. Bethel responded by reeling off 10 unanswered points to again build a 13-point lead, 58-45.
"We pressed a little and got back in the game, and Morgan hit some 3s that kind of got us going," Hunt said.
The Flying Queens made one final push.
After neither team scored for close to 3½ minutes,
Jade Jones got a bucket and Bennett bombed another 3 to make it 62-55. But that's as close as the Flying Queens came before the Wildcats once again responded, this time with a 3-pointer by Mariah McKenty kicking off an 8-0 push.
"They went inside on us a bunch and we couldn't move their post players," Hunt said. "Every time we tried to help they found an open man. They found the open player very, very well."
Bennett scored 13 points, two off her season-high, and had five steals to lead Wayland, followed by senior
Shayla Monreal with 12 points.
Shawna Monreal and senior
Jade Jones got eight each, with Jones pulling down a team-best 10 rebounds.
The Flying Queens made 19-of-69 (27.5 percent) shots from the field, including 8-of-28 (29 percent) from 3-point range. They made 11-of-14 (79 percent) free throws.
"We just couldn't get things going," Hunt said.
Bethel's Brandi Goodman, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, paced the Wildcats with 19 points, six above her average, and nine boards. Junior guard Shamon Pearson contributed a double-double with 14 points and 10 boards while freshman guard Morgan Martin had 13 points. Senior guard Mariah McKenty finished with 10 rebounds as Bethel held a 49-40 advantage on the glass.
The Wildcats shot 40 percent (24-of-60) from the field, 5-of-21 (24 percent) 3-pointers, and 17-of-23 (74 percent) free throws.
The Flying Queens were making their 24th all-time appearance at the national championship, which trails only Campbellsville (Ky.) (25) for the most in NAIA history.
