Johnson's Block, Weakley and Tate's Offense Carry Women's Basketball to MEC Playoff Win

WHEELING, W.Va. – The Frostburg State Women's Basketball team won in a thrilling 94-87 overtime revenge victory over Concord in the quarterfinals of the MEC Tournament on Thursday evening.
 
Frostburg took the jump ball, with senior Taylor Smith putting up the first shot of the game but missed off target.  Concord responded with the first points of the game, knotting a fastbreak layup off a game-opening steal.  Graduate Sarah Shamdeen put the Bobcats on the board with a three from behind the arc, with Smith getting the assist.  Senior Emilee Weakley converted her first points of the evening at the free throw line, as Shamdeen traded steals with the Mountain Lions, leading her to a fastbreak layup underneath and a 7-2 lead for FSU.  Freshman Julie Spinelli then swapped buckets with CU, as Smith tallied her first score of the game for an 11-10 read.  With four minutes left in the opening quarter, Weakley advanced Frostburg's advantage to five with back-to-back scores of her own.  Concord knocked in a free throw, before Weakley kept the energy on her side to increase the Bobcat's edge to 18-11.  Weakley again knocked down the next bucket for FSU as Concord fought for an 8-0 run to end the first on top 22-20.
 
Weakley quickly tied the game to start the second, sinking a mid-range jumper off a pass from Smith.  The Mountain Lions received their first points of the quarter at the charity stripe, as sophomore Alanna Tate worked to exchange the next scores with CU.  Senior Jasmine Johnson recorded a block on the defensive end, but Concord was able to keep a 27-24 advantage.  A tip-in from Weakley got the Bobcats within one right before the midway mark of the second, as Johnson racked up another block, setting herself up for an easy layup on the other end to give Frostburg the 28-27 edge.  Both teams exchanged one-point leads as time went on, with Weakley and Johnson seeing the points for FSU.  Tate knocked down a jumper off a Mountain Lions turnover, followed by an easy two underneath to put the Bobcats up 36-31.  CU rallied for a layup and a three to tie the game at 36, before connecting on an easy two off a FSU miss to jump back in front 38-36.  Tate tied the game again, this time at 38, as Weakley swapped buckets with Concord to end the half at a 40-40 tie. 
 
Smith knocked down a triple to open up the third, as CU responded right back from deep.  Sophomore Grace Middleton kept the game at a tie as time went on, with the Mountain Lions taking five consecutive points to build a 50-45 lead.  An and-one from Weakley brought the Bobcats within a score, as both teams saw a scoring drought for two minutes with Johnson swatting another shot from Concord.  CU broke the drought with a layup, as Weakley responded with a three to set the game at 52-51, still in favor of the Mountain Lions.  Concord stayed just one-step ahead as time ticked down in the third, keeping their three-point advantage.  With a 56-53 game, Smith sunk a three off a find from Middleton, tying the game once more with 2:23 left in the quarter.  Middleton then earned herself a bucket for a FSU lead, with Weakley and Johnson keeping Frostburg on top 62-58 heading into the fourth. 
 
Weakley drained a triple for the first points of the fourth over a minute into action.  CU got on the board in the quarter with a mid-range jumper, seeing a duo of points to start their offense in the fourth.  Tate and Spinelli built the Bobcats lead to seven for a 71-64 game with 5:37 left in regulation.  As time went on, Concord sparked another 8-0 run when they needed it most, jumping in front 72-71 with 1:56 left on the clock.  Johnson got the scoring going again for Frostburg at the free throw line with a perfect two-for-two trip.  The Mountain Lions quickly hit a jumper out of their timeout, putting them in the lead 74-73 with now 46 seconds left.  FSU took their own timeout in response, with Tate running down court in attempt for a layup but was fouled, where she was able to nail one free throw to tie the game at 74.  Out of another CU timeout, the Mountain Lions were fouled, sinking both free throws for a two-point game.  Playing smart with 20 seconds left on the clock, FSU called a timeout to prepare the tying bucket.  Tate came out with a successful jumper with 13 seconds left to play, causing Concord to call their final timeout with a 76-76 score.  With the last shot, the Mountain Lions drove in the lane, leaning toward the right side where they ran into Johnson, who swatted CU's attempt at the game-winning score, sending the game into overtime at 76-76. 
 
With five more minutes on the clock, Tate kept Frostburg rolling, working for a three-point play to earn the first points of overtime.  Johnson converted a foul at the other end, setting up Concord for their first points of the extra period.  Tate again put one in for the Bobcats, moving FSU's lead to 81-78 with not even a minute gone in OT.  The Mountain Lions again scored a pair of points at the free throw line, as Spinelli answered with a duo of points at the charity stripe as well to keep Frostburg in front by three.  Tate continued to take matters into her own hands, seeing back-to-back scores for FSU to move their lead to 87-80 with 1:48 left to play.  Tate had her own answer for every free throw CU made throughout overtime, quickly answering on the other end each and every time.  Tate sunk a pair of free throws to sit the game at 91-84 with 29 seconds left on the clock, as Concord came out of their timeout with a three to cut their deficit to 91-87.  Forced now to foul, the Mountain Lions sent FSU to the line where Smith and Johnson were credited with free throws to set the final score at 94-87 in favor of Frostburg. 
 
Weakley led all scorers with 30 points, with Tate right behind her with a career-high 28 points on 12-of-20 shooting.  Johnson was next with a double-double of 10 points and a career-high 18 rebounds, while also seeing six blocks.  Smith added nine points, six rebounds, and three assists.
 
With the win, Frostburg improves to 19-10 on the season, while Concord finishes their season 15-14.  The Bobcats stay alive, advancing to the semifinals where they will have a rematch with the No. 1 seed Fairmont State on Saturday, March 8 at 12 PM.  For more information, please visit frostburgsports.com and Tournament Central.