Women's Basketball bounces back against #17 Richard Bland in home opener

RALEIGH, NC – Wake Tech Women's Basketball improved to 2-2 on the season and 2-0 in conference play with a 64-55 win over #17 Richard Bland on Wednesday night. The Eagles trailed entering the fourth quarter, but their offense exploded for 25 points in the final period to come back and seal the victory.

Sophomore forward Aquarius Pettaway was the Eagles' leading scorer, finishing with 13 points, but the more impressive figure for her was the 17 rebounds she grabbed on the night. That tally fell just one short of her career-high (18), which she set in her first ever collegiate game against Guilford Tech on November 1, 2022.

"Tonight's win was very important," head coach Taisha Murphy said. "Not only was it a home game, we started off conference play at JCC a couple of weeks ago and then we had two games we dropped. We didn't play as hard as we should have. We challenged them the past two days in practice to bounce back and I think they showed up."

Wake Tech committed 30 turnovers on the night but made up for that by creating some havoc of their own on defense, recording 23 steals.

"We're a really fast-paced team and we want teams to speed up and have to throw the ball all over the gym," head coach Taisha Murphy said after the win, "at the same time we can't be one of the teams that does that in return."

Other significant contributions came from sophomore guard Brooklyn Ragland, who finished with eight points, shooting 3-for-3 from the field and 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. She also added six rebounds, five assists, and four steals. She set or tied season-highs in each of those categories. Journee Spencer recorded 10 rebounds and seven steals, creating extra possessions for the Eagles throughout the night.

There was a crowd of over 100 on hand to witness the win, and their energy was felt throughout the evening.

"I think the (home crowd) really helped our team," Murphy said. "I think our team bought in and they decided they want to win and they gave these people a show out here."

It was also Military Families Appreciation Night, with current and former military members honored throughout the game, including Richard Bland head coach Todd Sheeko who served in the United States Marine Corps.

This Saturday, The Eagles host Fayetteville Tech at Wake Tech's South Campus (Building N), tip off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.