MORGANTOWN — For 31 minutes, the Morgantown and Blackhawk (Pa.) girls’ basketball teams played exciting, even basketball inside the Rowdie Center Friday night. That one minute proved to be the difference, however, as the Cougars won 57-44, handing the Mohigans their sixth loss in seven games.
“The schedule wasn’t designed to be easy and we’ve got to keep learning from these games,’ MHS coach Doug Goodwin said. “Our goals are still in front of us. We’ve got to keep learning, keep grinding through the remainder of the season and then get prepared for when sectionals start.”
Morgantown (12-7) led 20-18 with one minute left in the second quarter but made several key mistakes that led to baskets for Blackhawk (20-2). A three-pointer from Ava Davis and a layup gave the Cougars a 23-20 lead with time winding down.
The Mohigans then lost the ball out of bounds and allowed Aubree Hupp to hit another trey as time expired to go into halftime down six, 26-20.
“That was the turning point,” Goodwin said. “We ended up getting behind the ball and there were just a couple of mistakes made there in the last minute. That eight-point swing was a little tough.”
Morgantown got as close as two in the second half, but Blackhawk never lost the lead, eventually building it to double figures in the fourth quarter.
“This was a tough one (Friday), we certainly wanted to get this one for our seniors,” Goodwin said. “We’ll get back at it (Saturday) morning.”
Morgantown played without all-state forward Lily Jordan, who is out with an injury and struggled to duplicate her inside presence, particularly on offense.
“We struggled offensively I thought,” Goodwin said. “It was nice to see Sophia (Wassick) put some points up on the board, that was good for her. We’ve just got to keep digging at it.”
Wassick was one of four seniors honored before the game. She scored a team-high 17 points.
“Sophia played very well, she stepped up when she needed to step up,’ Goodwin said. “It’s tough having Lily out right now, but it was nice to see her step up.”
Sadaya Jones was next for MHS with 14 points and Kayli Kellogg finished with 12.
Hupp led Blackhawk with 17 while Andrea Kinger, Alena Fusetti and Haley Romigh all scored 10.
Morgantown will host cross-town rival University next Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. and then end the regular season at Buckhannon-Upshur on Wednesday.
BOX SCORE
Blackhawk (Pa.) 57, Morgantown 44
BHK 8 18 9 12 — 57
MHS 10 10 6 18 — 44
BLACKHAWK (20-2) — Kinger 2 6-7 10; Fuscetti 3 2-2 10; Hupp 7 0-0 17; H. Romigh 1 0-0 3; P. Romigh 3 4-6 10; Davis 2 0-0 5; Sheesley 0 0-0 0.
MORGANTOWN (12-7) — Wassick 6 3-4 17; Howell 0 0-0 0; Jones 5 3-5 14; Kellogg 5 0-0 12; Smith 0 0-0 0; Hatcher 0 1-2 1.
3-Pt. Goals — Blackhawk 7 (Hupp 3, Fusetti 2, H. Romigh 1, Davis 1). Morgantown 5 (Wassick 2, Kellogg 2, Jones 1).
Fouled Out — Morgantown: Smith.
