Freshmen Try to Shine in Mastodons’ Season Opener, Fall to Mountaineers

Morgantown, WV – The new look Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons (0-1) had a lot of questions entering today’s game, and unfortunately, there are still just as many – if not more – questions after Monday’s 47-83 loss to West Virginia (1-0). Though some bright spots were sprinkled in between the chaos, the Mastodons had nothing but trouble against the full court pressure from the Mountaineers. A talented group of freshmen that were challenged by head coach Maria Marchesano in the offseason to earn their minutes on a completely reloaded Mastodons team provided a small ray of light to the future of the program in an otherwise gloomy day in West Virginia.

Game Recap: The Mastodons started the game with a five-foot basket from the transfer junior Lili Krasovec. Unfortunately, this would be the only lead the Mastodons would hold in the game. Nine straight points from the Mountaineers over the next three minutes would give WVU the lead and allow them to set up their suffocating defense. For nearly the entire 40 minutes, West Virginia would pick up the Mastodons in full court pressure, trap in the corners, and play a hectic zone that seemed to confuse the ‘Dons.

Roughly halfway through the first quarter, head coach Maria Marchesano would get her freshmen class into the game to showcase the bright future of this Mastodon team. Freshmen Rylee Bess, Avery Wagner, Destiny Macharia, and Bailee Duck would all see action in the first quarter of this game. Marchesano has faith and trust in the young members of her team, and she needs to after losing one of the most experienced teams in the NCAA to graduation. However, the combination of a lot of freshmen minutes and next to no continuity from last year’s team led to a historic night in favor of the Mountaineers.

West Virginia set a school record with 31 turnovers forced as a result of the relentless defense. Putting this glaring problem aside, the Mastodons can look towards a bright spot in that they forced 17 turnovers, nearly matching the average 18.5 forced turnovers of last year’s very good defensive team. Another bright spot to take away from this game for the Mastodons is that they were not afraid to let the three-ball rip. The Mastodons attempted 24 three-pointers – one shy of their potent offense last season. Good news is that some of them went in too. Bess and Macharia each ended the game with three made three-pointers.

Defensively, the Mastodons struggled to stop the scoring in the paint. The ‘Dons who looked to have a different personnel with five forwards on the roster (Jordan Reid, Alana Nelson, Hillary Offing, Lili Krasovec, and Wagner), could not find an answer to the down low attack from Kierra Wheeler. Wheeler and the Mountaineers recorded 42 points in the paint as opposed to PFW’s 24. Whistles didn’t help the Mastodons either. PFW recorded 28 fouls and nine of the 11 Mastodons to record minutes ended the game with at least 2 personal fouls. Offing and Macharia finished blemish free in that category. Alana Nelson picked up a quick five fouls and found herself on the bench for the eight minutes remaining in the game.

On the trips down the floor that didn’t result in a turnover for the ‘Dons, the offense was quieted by the WVU defense. Contributions from Nelson and Reid (4 PTS and 3 PTS) were not nearly the amount expected from the former NAIA All-Americans. Rylee Bess used her quickness on a few occasions to make some shot opportunities connecting on half of her three point tries (3-6).

Stats and Leaders: The Mountaineers were led in scoring by senior Jordan Harrison with 15 points. Wheeler (14 points), Jordan Thomas (12 points), and Sydney Shaw (11 points) were the others in double figures for WVU. Wisconsin transfer Carter McCray led the team off the bench in rebounds with nine. Wheeler and Shaw each flirted with a double-double recording 7 rebounds each. As a team, West Virginia shot nearly 40% from the field (27-68) and 31.6% from beyond the arc (6-19). The Mountaineers used 23 made free throws on 34 attempts to keep the ‘Dons at bay.

The Mastodons were led by two freshmen Rylee Bess and Destiny Macharia with nine points each. Freshman Bailee Duck and graduate transfer Nika Lokica each had six. Alana Nelson led the ‘Dons with 6 rebounds even with missing the last eight minutes of play. Reid and Lokica each chipped in with 5 rebounds. As a team, Purdue Fort Wayne shot 36.5% (19-52) from the floor and 29.2% (7-24) from three-point range. The Mastodons only attempted seven free throws the entire game and were only able to cash in two. The Mastodons did not attempt their first free throw until 27 minutes into the game with a Bailee Duck and-one opportunity.

What’s Next: The Mountaineers will stay home and welcome MAC foe Kent State into Morgantown on Friday, November 7. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00pm ET and will be broadcasted on ESPN+.

The Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons will travel to Cincinnati to face the Xavier Musketeers on Friday, November 7. The game tips off at 6:30pm ET and will be broadcasted on ESPN+.