The Golden Grizzlies women’s basketball team came away with a lofty 84-70 win over the Wright State Raiders at the OU Credit Union O’Rena on Friday, Dec. 6.
The win shifts the Golden Grizzlies record to 3-6. Although Oakland’s record isn’t the most glamorous, the Golden Grizzlies have faced a gauntlet of tough non-conference opponents to start their season.
Just two of Oakland’s opponents this season, the Central Michigan Chippewas and the Raiders, have a losing record. Oakland’s other matchups have been against teams with comfortable winning records, including the Michigan State Spartans, who have yet to lose a game this season.
For Oakland, Maddy Skorupski led the team in scoring, tallying 21 points, five rebounds and a team-high eight assists. Macy Smith and Lianna Baxter were also key players in the win, scoring 16 and 14 points, respectively.
Meanwhile, Wright State saw most of its scoring come from Rylee Sagester, who had 17 points — in addition to Sagester, Chloe Chard Peloquin and Amaya Staton contributed double-digit scoring efforts.
In the first quarter, the game remained quite competitive. Sereniti Roberts-Adams scored the first point for the Golden Grizzlies with a tough layup following a pair of free throws from Raider Amaya Staton.
The rest of the first saw back-and-forth action between both teams. As soon as either team got ahead, the opposing team always had an answer. It looked like the quarter would end with both teams tied. However, Sagester knocked down a last-second three to put the Raiders ahead 18-15.
Down a possession, Oakland entered the second quarter with aggression on both sides of the court. Baxter started things with a layup on the Golden Grizzlies’ first possession before knocking down a three on the next, moving the lead back in Oakland’s favor.
From there, the Golden Grizzlies forcefully attacked the paint, getting high-percentage shots and drawing multiple fouls, leading to a flurry of trips to the free-throw line. Notably, the Golden Grizzlies were extremely efficient from the charity stripe in the second, missing just one of their 11 attempts.
With the Oakland offense in rhythm, the defense followed suit and the Raiders struggled to find a bucket. By the quarter’s end, Wright State converted just 13.3% of their shots as Oakland went into the half with a staggering 39-24 lead.
Coming out of the break, Wright State’s offensive woes continued as the Golden Grizzlies built on their lead. However, midway through the third quarter, the Raiders started to gain momentum after Abbie Riddle converted a layup.
Riddle’s layup jumpstarted an 11-0 Raider run that lasted over three minutes, erasing the Golden Grizzlies’ double-digit lead. Fortunately for Oakland, Smith knocked down a three to end Wright State’s run as the Golden Grizzlies ended the quarter still ahead 58-47.
In the fourth quarter, Oakland’s efficient scoring continued. The Raiders put up a fight, not letting the Golden Grizzly lead get too impractical. However, Wright State could not break through a tough Oakland defense, giving the Golden Grizzlies a crucial win on the season.
The Golden Grizzlies came together on both sides of the court in the win, which is a good sign going forward into the season. Notably, Oakland’s defensive effort kept two of Wright State’s top scorers, Claire Henson and Macie Taylor, at bay, as the duo combined for just six points.
Next, the Golden Grizzlies will continue conference play as they travel to Pennsylvania to take on the Robert Morris Colonials on Wednesday, Dec. 18. Following the match against the Colonials, Oakland will wrap up its non-conference slate on the road against the Indiana Hoosiers on Sunday, Dec. 22.