Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech earned its third ACC victory of the season in a convincing 78-56 victory over Boston College at Cassell Coliseum Sunday afternoon
All three of the Hokies’ wins against conference foes have been decided by 20-or-more points. Tech moves to 13-5 overall and 3-3 in the ACC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Leila Wells kicked off the scoring for the contest with her triple that fell through the net at 9:04 to ignite a Virginia Tech 7-4 run headed into the under-five media break (4:28). The Hokies then ripped for nine unanswered points, forcing Boston College to burn a timeout with two and a half minutes remaining in the first period. Samyha Suffren (2:09) drove through the paint for a layup and Mel Daley (0:56, 0:29) knocked down four straight shots from the line to help Tech to a 22-9 advantage.
Aggressiveness on the offensive side of the ball allowed Kilah Freelon to corral the ricochet off the board and bounce pass over to Mackenzie Nelson (8:45), who was dashing through the paint, before Carleigh Wenzel chipped in two points from the charity stripe. Freelon’s toughness helped her finish strong at the rim at 6:01 as she was fouled on her way up and connected for the three-point play. Less than a minute after checking into the contest, Wells dished out to Sophie Swanson (1:09), who was standing beyond the arc, to swish a three-pointer as the Hokies were ahead, 41-22, at the half.
Tech came out of the locker room aggressively, opening the second half with a fast break layup from Nelson (9:43) as she intercepted an Eagles pass to push the lead past 20. Aniya Trent (2:51) finished inside the paint off an assist from Nelson and Baker (1:03) drilled a triple late to highlight another strong scoring stretch. Despite Boston College converting 10 of their 12 free throws, the Hokies extended their lead to 61-37 headed into the final frame.
The Eagles opened the final period with a three-pointer, but Virginia Tech responded as Wells (8:34) finished a second-chance layup, Wenzel (7:48) scored on the fast break, and Baker (6:14) drilled a trey off a turnover to reassert the Hokies’ momentum. Tech was able to push its advantage to as many as 27 points with 2:34 remaining as Daley took it down the court herself for the lay-in and the Hokies cruised to a 78-56 victory.
GAME NOTES
- Virginia Tech recorded their 500th program win inside Cassell Coliseum
- The Hokies won their seventh straight on their home court against Boston College
- It was also the 20th win for Tech in the all-time series history
- Virginia Tech earned their 10th home win this season and is just one of four teams in the ACC to hit that mark
- The Hokies poured in 40 points in the paint for the sixth time this season and second time in conference play
- Tech converted 89.5 percent (17-19) of their shots from the free throw, their highest mark of the season
- Forward Carys Baker led all players with 17 points as she hit three triples
- Guards Mel Daley and Carleigh Wenzel rounded out the double figure scoring with 10 points apiece
- Daley was a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line and chipped in six rebounds
- Wenzel dished out a game-best four assists
- Kilah Freelon posted nine points, nine rebounds, two assists, and a block
- Five of Freelon’s nine points were made from the stripe where she was an unblemished 5-5
- All 11 available Hokies saw time on the court in the win and 10 of them scored
UP NEXT
Virginia Tech hops back on the road for a trip to SMU on Thursday, Jan. 15 at 7:30 p.m. ET inside Moody Coliseum.