Duane Cochrane
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Lady Falcons face State tonight in quarterfinals
FAIRMONT — The Cleveland Browns of the late 1970s and early 1980s were given the moniker “The Cardiac Kids” for their uncanny ability to come from behind and win close ball games.
Fairmont State University’s women’s basketball team could easily qualify for that nickname this season.
No less than 16 of FSU’s 22 victories this season have come by 10 points or less and 12 of those wins have been by seven or fewer points.
Monday night in the opening round of the annual West Virginia Conference Tournament at the Joe Retton Arena FSU, the No. 3 seed, squeaked out a 60-54 win over No. 14 Davis & Elkins to improve to 22-6 on the year. The 22 victories are the third-highest win total in school history for Fairmont’s women’s program.
Tonight at 8:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals at the Charleston Civic Center don’t expect anything but another close ball game for the Lady Falcons, who despite being nationally-ranked for much of the season and finishing third in their 16-team league, have never been considered strong favorites over any team this season.
FSU’s opponent this evening is No. 11 West Virginia State, a team which is just 8-20 overall, but shocked fifth-seeded Charleston Monday night, 66-50.
“State is extremely athletic and they have one of the best players in the league in Brittany Mingo as was evidenced by her being named first-team all-conference,” said FSU coach Steve McDonald. “In addition to her they have several other talented players.
“They’re coming off a big win, they’re going to be fired up and they’re basically playing at home because they’re from right down the road in Institute.”
Mingo, a 5-9 junior guard from Akron, Ohio, scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds in State’s victory over Charleston Monday on the Golden Eagles’ home floor. She averages 19.6 points and 6.9 rebounds per game for the Lady Yellow Jackets.
FSU and State met just once during the regular season back on Jan. 26 in Fairmont. The Lady Falcons won that contest, 75-57, as five FSU players led by Danielle Cornish’s 16 points finished in double figures in the scoring column. Fairmont also held a 55-32 advantage in rebounds over the Lady Yellow Jackets.
“I’m sure they’re a different team now than they were then and in a lot of ways we’re a different team,” said McDonald.
FSU enters the contest having won seven of its last nine games. State, on the other hand, has won just two of its final nine contests. However, the Lady Yellow Jackets are playing like a team possessed. Veteran head coach Gill Heasley announced last week that he is resigning after the season due to back problems. Both he and assistant coach Eddie Ivy, who has run the team a lot this season in Heasley’s absence, feel like the league tournament is a second chance for their squad and they want to make the most of it. Monday night they did just that against the University of Charleston, their heavily-favored arch-rivals. In fact after the game UC head coach Sherry Winn admitted her team got outplayed in every facet.
Tonight expect more of the same from the Lady Yellow Jackets, who can cause a wealth of problems for FSU with their athleticism. History is also on State’s side tonight. Fairmont State has not won a quarterfinal round game in the league tournament since 1997. In the last 10 years Fairmont has played in the quarterfinals nine times and is 0-9 in those games.
“It’s a challenge for us,” said FSU junior center Gabby Gattuso, who just transferred into the Lady Falcons’ program this season. “When you’re a basketball player your goal is to play as much as you can for as long as you can.
“I don’t know anything about Charleston or the tournament down there, but I know I’m looking forward to it and this opportunity for our basketball team.”
- Duane Cochrane
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IUP fortunate to survive against FSU
The consensus opinion coming out of second-ranked and top-seeded Indiana (Pa.) University’s locker room following the Crimson Hawks’ nail-biting 71-67 victory over eighth-seeded Fairmont State here Saturday evening at Memorial Field House in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Men’s Atlantic Regional was that the host team survived despite a sub-par performance.
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Fantastic finish
Ashley Vavrek may have saved her best for last.
Fairmont State’s standout senior guard turned in a memorable performance in her final game in a Lady Falcon uniform last Friday night here at the Hammermill Center.
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IUP, Gannon pose big challenges for FSU
The tasks will be tall for Fairmont State’s men’s and women’s basketball teams who both qualified together for the NCAA Division II Basketball Tournament for the first time in school history.
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Deserving honor
Ashley Vavrek’s Most Valuable Player-winning performance in the recent West Virginia Conference Tournament helped Fairmont State claim its second league tournament title in three years and earn its third NCAA Division II Tournament berth in the last six seasons.
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FSU men, women earn D-II Tourney berths
Fairmont State’s men’s and women’s basketball teams learned Sunday they both earned berths in the annual NCAA Division II Tournament which will begin at campus sites this weekend.
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Thrilling victory
Incredible!
That’s about the only way to describe what took place Monday evening at the Joe Retton Arena.
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Custis heads four Falcons on All-WVC team
Sophomore Steve Custis and true freshman Isaac Thornton lead a group of four Fairmont State University players who received honors on the annual All-West Virginia Conference Men’s Basketball Team which was selected by the league’s 16 coaches and announced today by the conference.
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FSU hosts Concord in West Virginia Conference tourney opener
The regular season certainly didn’t end like Fairmont State’s men’s basketball team wanted it to.
Two losses during the final week of the season and a total of three losses in nine days have left the Falcons in a situation where their performance in the annual West Virginia Conference Tournament will be of the utmost importance if they have any hopes of playing past this week.
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The first step
It’s tournament time tonight at the Joe Retton Arena.
Fairmont State’s Lady Falcons open West Virginia Conference Tournament play this evening at 7:30 p.m. when they host West Virginia State University in a first-round game.
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Vavrek repeat member of All-WVC team
Fairmont State’s Ashley Vavrek headlines a trio of Lady Falcons who garnered honors on the annual All-West Virginia Conference Women’s Basketball Team, which was selected by the league’s 16 head coaches and announced Sunday by the conference
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IUP fortunate to survive against FSU
