Lady Wildcats Show Grit in Holiday Hoops Classic Ahead of SWAC Opener

BCU coach Janell Crayton Del Rosario guides the team during a time-out at the Holiday Invitational.

DELAND, Fla. – The Bethune-Cookman University women’s basketball team concluded play in the Holiday Hoops Classic at Stetson University this weekend, dropping a pair of contests against Stonehill College and William & Mary.

Despite flashes of offensive momentum and gritty defensive stretches, the Wildcats were unable to secure a victory in their final outings before the winter break.

Wildcats Fall Short in Seesaw Battle with Stonehill

In Friday’s opening matchup, Bethune-Cookman (B-CU) pushed Stonehill to the limit before falling 74-68. The game featured several lead changes throughout the second and third quarters.

Kailyn Peters delivered a standout performance for the Wildcats, dropping a season-high 15 points. Peters proved to be a versatile threat on the floor, adding six rebounds, three assists, and four steals to her stat line.

Scoring Droughts Sink Effort Against William & Mary

On Saturday, the Wildcats faced the Tribe of William & Mary (7-4). B-CU appeared primed for an upset early on, jumping out to a quick 11-4 lead.

The Wildcats relied on their defense to maintain a 24-23 advantage heading into halftime, despite a difficult shooting performance. B-CU managed just 1-of-12 shooting in the second quarter, but stayed ahead as the Tribe struggled similarly, hitting only 3-of-16 from the field.

The tide turned in the second half due to a combination of injuries and foul trouble:

Tyler Butler, who finished as the team’s leading scorer with 15 points, was limited by foul trouble.

Starting guard Jordan Brooks was sidelined by an injury early in the first quarter.

The offensive struggles deepened in the third quarter as the Wildcats went 2-of-10 from the floor. William & Mary took advantage of the slump, finding their rhythm to build a 10-point lead with just over a minute remaining in the period. The Tribe maintained control through the final frame to secure the 64-52 win.

Looking Ahead

The Lady Wildcats will now break for the holidays before hitting the road for a challenging non-conference finale. B-CU travels to face Jacksonville University (7-3) on Dec. 30. The Dolphins enter the matchup with momentum, highlighted by an earlier upset win over Georgia Tech in Atlanta.

Following the trip to Jacksonville, the Wildcats will return home to Moore Gymnasium to open Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) play against rival Florida A&M on Jan. 3.