KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The Western Michigan women's basketball team dropped a Mid-American Conference matchup 83-79 to Eastern Michigan University on Saturday, Feb. 8 at University Arena.
Western Michigan struggled with turnovers early on and shot just 73 percent from the charity stripe to Eastern's 81.5 percent. The Eagles tallied 38 points in the paint with 11 points off Bronco turnovers, led by Jenna Annecchiarico with a 31-point performance. WMU shot 41.9 percent (26-of-62) from the field in a contest that saw seven ties and eight lead changes between the two teams. The Eagles out-rebounded the Broncos 43 to 37 and held the advantage in second chance points, 17 to 13.
During the setback, redshirt senior
Breanna Mobley tallied 10 rebounds to set a new Western Michigan rebounding record. Her 1,029
th rebound to break the record came from a grab in the first minute of the game. Mobley now holds the rebounding record for both men's and women's basketball, and is the second-ever Bronco to have scored 1,000 points with 1,000 rebounds in her career, alongside WMU Hall of Fame legend Pat Charity. Mobley finished the contest with a game-high 22 points, earning her first double-double since January against Central Michigan.
Jordan Walker had a strong showing for the Broncos, converting a season-high four of eight three pointers to total 21 points. She added three rebounds, two assists, and two steals to the final scoresheet. With 11 points and 10 rebounds, junior
Leighah-Amori Wool tallied her second career double-double and first of the season, shooting 5-for-7 at the free throw line and 8-of-13 from field goal range.
The Broncos struggled early on, totaling just eight points in the first quarter. Eastern Michigan took a ten-point lead into the first timeout of the quarter. After the huddle,
Jordan Walker came out with her first three of the game, followed by a pair of free throws from Mobley to bring the score to 16-8 EMU.
WMU outscored the Eagles 23-13 in a strong second quarter. The frame opened on a deep three off the bench from sophomore
Maddie Watters, backed up by a three from freshman
Sydney Shafer to cap off a 6-0 run to put the Broncos back on pace. Shafer took control with a layup to tie the game at 27-27. Western Michigan took its first lead thanks to four straight points from Mobley to take a 31-29 advantage into the halftime break.
Opening the third quarter with a jumper from Mobley, Western Michigan went ahead on a 10-0 run for their largest lead of the contest. Walker sunk back-to-back threes to draw an Eastern Michigan timeout midway through the frame. Off the bench for the Broncos,
Reilly Jacobson came ahead with a three from center arc, her first points of the game. Eastern Michigan came out of the woodwork to hit back-to-back threes to narrow the gap as the Broncos held on at 55-51.
The Eagles outscored the Broncos 32-24 during an eventful final 10 minutes. Walker opened the quarter with her fourth deep shot of the game, followed up by a layup and more points from Shafer. Eastern's Annecchiarico kept the Eagles close with strong shooting from beyond the arc, making three shots in the last quarter alone. WMU put up more points including a three from senior starter
Kamrin Reed, but began to struggle as Eastern went 6-for-6 from the line and outscored the Broncos 11-5 in the final minutes of the game. Despite late points from grad transfer
Chelayne Bailey, EMU was able to hold on to its lead to take home the victory, 83-79.
The Broncos, now 11-10 overall and 4-6 in the conference, host Buffalo on Wednesday, February 12 for a 7.p.m. tipoff inside University Arena.
