MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – If the Stags played the way they did in the final 20 minutes they are going to win a lot of games.  The Stags outscored the #22/21 Mountaineers 42-35 in the second half but West Virginia used a 26-5 run to open the game, and the Stags fell 67-53 on the road.  Kristin Schatzlein led the Stags in the afternoon with 17 points.

“We knew what we were getting ourselves into when we played West Virginia,” Head Coach Joe Frager said.  “They are an outstanding program and with their length it gave us matchup nightmares.  We just wanted to play with the best of our ability and I was proud that the kids didn't pack it and were able to make plays.

Coming off arguably their best season in program history, with a 30-5 season and their first-ever Big 12 regular season championship, No.22/21 West Virginia led by as many as 21 in the first half with a 26-5 lead.  Connecticut native Bria Holmes, who was named the Big-12 Preseason Player of the Year had 10 points during that stretch.

Although the Stags struggled shooting from the floor, Fairfield tried to stay in the games in a variety of ways.  The Stags forced 11 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes and grabbed 16 rebounds against a team that snagged 64 rebounds just one game ago.  Fairfield also held one of the offensive teams in the country to 32 points in the first half, the second lowest number West Virginia has had in any half this season.

The Stags though had a second half they will remember and build on all season.  Fairfield out-scored the Mountaineers 42-35 in the second half.  Fairfield shot 59 percent from the floor in the stanza and limited West Virginia to a 37 percent showing.

Fairfield started it off scoring 10 of the first 19 points of the half.  Sarah Stock nailed her first career 3-pointer during the run. 

The highlight of the half came with a 6-0 run for the Stags that cut the Mountaineer lead to 17.  Schatzlein had a long range shot and Lizzy Ball had a layup during the stretch.

Casey Smith notched a layup and two free throws to cut the deficit 65-50 with two minutes remaining.  A free throw by Cooper put the Stags down 14 and put the final score at 67-53.

“When you're a really strong team you can let down a little bit but I have to give our kids credit,” Coach Frager said.  “We showed more poise in the second half and got contribution off our bench.  If we had packed it in I would have thought this trip would not have been worth it.

The Mountaineers controlled the boards during the final stanza.  West Virginia out-rebounded the Stags 16-3 in the first eight minutes of the half.  Helena Orts had two of those boards and became a presence in the paint on the offensive glass, despite trying to post up against Lanay Montgomery who is three inches taller than Orts.

Fairfield did control the ball better in the second frame, being charged with just one turnover during the first eight minutes. The Stags would force 16 West Virginia turnovers in the game.  Two of those turnovers came when the Mountaineers were whistled for offensive fouls, when Felicia DaCruz drew charges in the paint. 

Lizzy Ball had the lone assist for the Stags in the first half and increased her span of improved passing over the last four games.  Ball has eight assists and just two turnovers in that span.

Macey Hollenshead, who brought nearly 30 members of her friends and family, grabbed her second career rebound in the first half.

Fairfield held West Virginia leading scorer to 15 points, well below her season average of 27 points per game.  The 15 points was a season low.

Schatzlein had a team-high 17 points, her sixth straight game with double figures, the longest streak of her career.

Fairfield will now head to Loudonville, N.Y. to begin their MAAC slate against the Siena Saints on Wednesday. 

“This second half should really help us,” Frager said.  “We substituted freely because of mental mistakes which have been our Achilles heel.  If we learn from that and embrace that when you stop the self-inflicted mistakes we can be a very good team.”