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No. 12 Hokies Defeat the Demon Deacons and Extend their Winning Streak

Zachary Ozmon·January 22, 2023

Moving on from these two making history, let's take a look at what else happened as the Hokies defeated the Demon Deacons 74-57 to improve to 6-3 in conference play.

The Hokies looked dominant in the first half on both sides of the ball. In the first quarter offensively, the Hokies were led by Liz Kitley, who started hot from the field, hitting her first 4 out of 5 shots inside. She also added a couple of free throws, finishing the first quarter with 10 points. Great defense from the Hokies limited the Deacs to 10 points and caused four turnovers.

The second quarter was just about the same as the first. The Hokie defense once again held the Deacs to 10 points in the quarter. The offense, however, exploded with players like Taylor Soule and Georgia Amoore getting more involved. Amoore ended the second quarter with 11 points, making three 3-pointers in the process. Meanwhile, for the Deacs, Kaia Harrison and Jewel Spear looked to keep their squad afloat going into halftime down 15.

Coming out of the half, Wake Forest was on fire, especially Jewel Spear, who scored 18 of the Deacs' 30 points in the third quarter. She hit three 3 pointers in the quarter as she led the attempted comeback. As the lead started to dwindle for the Hokies, emotions began to run high, but that didn’t deter the team, as stated by Kenny Brooks.

"They picked me up; we always want to control our emotions... It kind of gets to that point where I get a little emotional because you just get into protective mode... "You see your kids getting hit, and your emotions ride high."

Brooks looked to his stars to lead them in the fourth, and that's exactly what they did.

The Hokies flipped the switch in the fourth quarter, as they finished the game outscoring the Deacs 21-7. Kitley continued to dominate in the paint, Amoore hit big shots and dished the ball exceptionally, and Soule continued to drive to the rim and grab huge rebounds on both sides of the court. Together, these three turned the game back in favor of the Hokies and effectively ended the game.

With the final score of 74-57, the 12th-ranked Hokies moved to 16-3 on the season and, as stated before, 6-3 in conference play. For Wake Forest, they dropped their third game in a row and fall to 2-7 in conference play.

With a tall test ahead against the conference's best team, the 13th-ranked Duke Blue Devils, the Hokies look to win their fourth game in a row as they travel to Cameron Indoor Stadium Thursday night.

Making History

Coming into Sunday afternoon, Elizabeth Kitley and Georgia Amoore were primed to make history for their program.

For Kitley, she had the opportunity to become the all-time leader in field goals made. She broke Tere Williams' previous record late in the first quarter, hitting 695 and more for the day. Her coach, Kenny Brooks, said later to the press:

"You talk about the history of Virginia Tech women's basketball; it's not like it's relatively new, it goes far back... "For her to start breaking these records like that, I think what it means is that Hokie nation can't take her greatness for granted."

For Amoore, she had the opportunity to own the most assists in ACC play in program history. With 6 assists on the night, she surpassed that record, making it her second night making history in Cassell since she recorded her triple double.