Weakley, Spinelli Carry Women's Basketball Over UDC to Round Out the Calendar Year

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Frostburg State Women's Basketball team wrapped up the 2024 year with a 72-64 road win against the District of Columbia on Monday evening. 
 
Senior Taylor Smith got the rebound after UDC's first miss of the game, leading to senior Emilee Weakley scoring the first bucket of the game in the paint.  Senior Jasmine Johnson earned a putback layup off an offensive rebound on Frostburg's next possession, pushing the Bobcats in front 4-0 to start.  The Firebirds took the next two scores to tie the game, before both teams went on to trade leads.  Back-to-back treys from Weakley and Smith saw FSU on top 12-8 around the halfway mark, as another three from the Bobcats, this time from freshman Ayla Hileman, increased Frostburg's lead to five.  Freshman Julie Spinelli accounted for the next five FSU points, as a layup from Hileman sat the game at 22-15 after the first. 
 
Hileman opened the second with another trey from deep for a 10-point game, before UDC responded right away with a bucket to get the game under a double-digit gap.  Weakley and Spinelli worked to increase Frostburg's to 12, as both teams swapped buckets over the new few minutes.  Five consecutive points from Weakley increased the Bobcats' advantage to 13, as the Firebirds fought to get it to a 37-28 game.  Another trey from Smith, followed by UDC putting in a score at the buzzer put the game at 40-30 at the break. 
 
Both teams saw a bit of a slow start to third, as UDC and Johnson traded layups to start play.  A three from Firebirds at the eight-minute mark brought the score to 42-35, before neither team scored for the next two minutes.  After misses were traded, Weakley was sent to the line for two, converting both for a 44-35 game.  UDC sunk a three from deep to keep the quarter going, as Weakley and Spinelli each knocked down a free throw to add two points to Frostburg's total.  A pair of layups from the Firebirds brought them within four, before Weakley connected again from deep to put FSU back on top by six.  UDC marched right down the court and nailed a three of their own in response, bringing the game to a three-point differential.  The Firebirds kept the game within three for the next minute, before back-to-back triples from Spinelli fired the Bobcats up for a 56-47 edge heading into the fourth and final quarter.
 
Weakley sunk two free throws a minute into the fourth to put FSU back on top by 11.  UDC struggled to get their offense going, not seeing any points until over two minutes in when they converted two free throws as well.  The Firebirds fought to get within five over the next span of minutes, as the Bobcats were unable to add to their score.  With under four to play, Spinelli found Weakley in the paint for an easy two, before Spinelli found herself open underneath the basket for an easy lay-in, putting the score at 63-55.  Four straight points from UDC saw a four-point game with 2:38 left in regulation, but points from Weakley and Spinelli moved the game to 66-59.  Weakley connected on four straight free throws, before Smith sunk one to seal the game with a 72-64 win for Frostburg as time finished out. 
 
Weakley scored a game-high 30 points, sinking 12 of 17 free throws, while also pulling down a game-high 14 rebounds.  Spinelli was next with 19 points and eight rebounds, while Smith scored nine points, grabbed nine rebounds, and dished out five assists, and Hileman saw eight points. 
 
With the win, Frostburg enters the break 8-4, while UDC drops to 2-9.  The Bobcats are back in action on Wednesday, January 8 on their home floor against West Liberty at 5:30 PM.  For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.