Women’s Basketball Bounces Norfolk State for First WNIT Win in Program History

Loyola women’s basketball conquered the Norfolk State University Spartans 58-54 in the opening round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT). Second-year forward Brooklyn Vaughn led Loyola with 13 points, including the go ahead foul shot with 0.4 seconds left. Third-year guard Da’Brya Clark posted a game high 19 points for the Spartans.

The win marked the first time the team took home a WNIT win in program history. 

After winning the opening tip, the Ramblers got off to a hot start with a 6-0 run courtesy of a paint jumper from graduate guard Alexus Mobley, who then found Vaughn inside for a layup, bookending the run with a layup of her own. 

Third-year Spartan guard Anjanae Richardson got Norfolk State on the board with a layup two and a half minutes into the quarter. Her layup started a Spartan run as Clark came away with a steal and score. Loyola missed a three, and fourth-year forward Ciara Bailey made a third straight layup for Norfolk State, being fouled and sinking the and-one for the 7-6 lead.

Fourth-year guard Kira Chivers broke the streak and reclaimed the lead on an elbow three. Sloppy play ensued for the next minute and a half with turnovers and misses on both sides before Clark tied the game at nine on a lay-in. Fourth-year forward Carmen Kweti put Norfolk State in front with another layup.

It was nearly two minutes before Norfolk State’s graduate guard Jasha Clinton connected on a deep jumper with her foot on the three-point line to extend the Spartan advantage. Second-year guard Alexa Kinas connected on the first Rambler points in over four minutes with a contested layup, drawing the foul and finishing the three-point play.

Kweti matched with a jumper for the last basket of the quarter with just over a minute to play with Norfolk State leading 15-12 after the first.

The second quarter started with three straight Loyola misses, but strong offensive rebounding led to Chivers ripping the ball away from Clark and finding Vaughn, who put the layup in. Bailey tacked on two with a layup, before Clinton swished a deep three from the elbow.

Vaughn continued to lead Loyola’s offensive charge by drawing a foul, but only converted on one of two shots. Norfolk State missed a three, and Chivers capitalized with one of her own to cut it to 20-18.

The Spartans responded with third-year guard Cire Worley making two at the line, matched immediately by a hook shot from redshirt third-year forward Clara Djoko. Turnovers plagued both sides as neither side scored for the next three minutes before first-year guard and forward Alex-Anne Bessette made a layup and drew a foul but missed the and-one.

Clark and Bessette traded threes before Worley took the lead back on a three. Loyola closed the quarter with Bessette missing a fadeaway as the Ramblers trailed 28-25 at half.

Chivers started the second half with a layup, countered by a Clark jumper before Bessette connected on a 3-pointer to tie at 30. Norfolk State’s second-year center LeAire Nicks made a layup, drawing a foul on Mobley but missed the and-one. Mobley made up for the foul by drawing one of her own and sinking both attempts at the stripe.

Four straight turnovers — two apiece for each side — kept the game even at 32. Clark broke the tie with two free throws. Vaughn scored the Ramblers first points in over three minutes with a jumper, met by a Nicks lay-in to keep the Spartans in the lead. Worley and Vaughn traded post makes as Norfolk State held the 38-36 advantage at the media timeout.

Mobley missed a jumper out of the break, but Chivers caught the offensive rebound and threw in the jumper. Djoko followed with a floater as Loyola took their first lead of the half. Richardson missed a three on the final possession of the quarter, but Kweti fought for the rebound and banked in the putback at the buzzer to tie at 40 entering the fourth quarter.

Clark kicked off the final quarter with a corner three and Kinas countered with a jumper on the following possession. Kweti made a paint jumper to reinstate their three point lead. Vaughn and second-year guard Kendall Hendrix both missed close layups, but Hendrix’s second attempt sent her to the line, where she missed both shots. 

Richardson expanded the lead after drawing a foul and making the second foul shot. Loyola’s following possession was chaotic, having a pass knocked away into the backcourt with less than 10 seconds remaining on the shot clock, Mobley missed a logo three, and second-year forward Roisin Granberry drew a jump ball on the rebound before being thrown to the floor by Bailey, who drew a technical.

Kinas knocked down both technical free throws and Grandberry capitalized on the extra possession for Loyola making a layup and drawing another foul, sinking the and-one for a five point possession and giving the Ramblers a 47-46 lead. Clinton drew a foul of her own, hitting one of two to tie.

Grandberry missed an elbow three but Chivers secured the offensive rebound, kicking it out to Bessette who found Mercille deep behind the top of the key where she splashed home the 3-pointer.

An out of bounds call on the ensuing Norfolk State possession kept the ball with the Spartans, but head coach Allison Guth challenged the call which was overturned in favor of Loyola. A travel call on Bessette drew ire from Guth who expressed her frustrations to the referees to no avail. 

Clark took advantage by tying the game on a corner three. Two minutes of tight defense kept the game at a stalemate before Vaugh broke through on a layup, matched by two free throws from Richardson. 

After missing a three, Bessette took a shoe to the face, falling quickly to the ground in pain. The referees reviewed the play for a possible flagrant foul but kept it as a common foul. Mercille checked in for the injured Bessette, missing the first but making the second foul shot.

Norfolk State called timeout to advance the ball down one with 54.8 seconds remaining. A poor pass from Worley was tipped away by Kinas and caught by Chivers. After running the shot clock down to 12, Guth took a timeout to gather the Ramblers for their biggest possession of the game. 

Mobley missed a three with five seconds left, but Vaughn nabbed the offensive rebound, racing behind the arc before drawing a foul with 3.3 to go. Vaughn missed the first but made the second as the Spartans used their last timeout to draw up the final play of the game. 

Clark caught the inbound, took a dribble forward and threw up a missed three. Kinas was called for a foul on the shot and Clark made two of the three shots. Grandberry grabbed the rebound and Guth called a timeout with 0.7 seconds left. Vaughn was grabbed on the inbound, putting her at the line with Loyola in the bonus. She missed the first but made the second. 

The Spartans tried to inbound the ball, but Norfolk State head coach Jermaine Woods attempted to use a timeout despite having none left, resulting in a technical foul for the Spartans. His reaction to the call drew his second straight technical foul, ejecting him from the game.

After a multi-minute break as the referees deliberated the call, Kinas stepped up to the line and sank three of four free throws before firing Loyola’s inbound up in the air to close a 58-54 first round victory. 

After the win, Guth spoke on how proud she was of the team’s rebounding and paint defense against a tough Norfolk State team.

“Really excited for Rambler Nation, this time of year is about surviving and advancing, and that’s what we did tonight,” Guth said. “I was pleased with how we rebounded and defended the paint, and our zone really disrupted them. We’re continuing that next-player-up mentality as we move on to a tough matchup with Florida Gulf Coast.”

With the win, Loyola rambles on to the second round where they will head south to Fort Myers, Fla. to face Florida Gulf Coast University Monday March 23 at 6 p.m. Streaming will be available on ESPN+.