WHEELING, W. Va. -- The 19th-ranked and top-seeded Fairmont State University women's basketball team battled the eighth-seeded University of Charleston in the MEC Tournament Quarterfinals. The Falcons overcame a tightly contested game and pulled away for the 75-56 victory.

"I thought our team did exactly what I wanted and that was fight," head coach Stephanie Anderson said after the win. "Our team was extremely physical and the fought hard for all the loose balls and were extremely tough. I loved the effort."

Alyssa DeAngelo helped push the Falcons to the win with 21 points, going 6-11 from the field and 8-9 from the free throw line. Leslie Huffman added 17 points with six rebounds and three steals while Jalen Gibbs scored an additional 14 points.

After winning the opening jump, Fairmont State (25-4) went down the court and worked the ball inside to Jalen Gibbs for the opening points. After forcing a turnover, Alyssa DeAngelo found Gibbs in the lane for another layup. Charleston (16-14) got on the board with a three but the Falcons once again got the ball to Gibbs for the lay-in and extended the lead, 6-3.

The Golden Eagles evened the score with another three but DeAngelo responded with one of her own. UC made it a one-point game (9-8) with a layup but DeAngelo worked her way into the paint for an easy layup to lead 11-8 with 4:55 left in the first period.

Out of the media timeout, Charleston tied the game once more with another three but six-straight free throws by the Falcons pushed them back in front, 17-11. FSU opened the lead to eight before the Golden Eagles went on a 6-0 run to close out the first period as the top-seeded Falcons maintained the advantage, 19-17.

The two teams went back-and-forth to start the second with the game being tied on separate occasions. Fairmont State got some offensive rhythm with consecutive field goals by DeAngelo and Aaliyah Brunny to force a UC timeout as FSU led 25-21 with 6:41 on the clock.

Charleston cut the difference to one with another three but the Falcons offense started to find its groove once more. The team scored the next eight points to hold a nine-point edge, 33-24. The Golden Eagles scored the next five points before Bre Wilson hit a three-point basket. In the waning seconds though, UC made a field goal but FSU were ahead 36-31 going to the half.

Just like any other point of the first half, the Golden Eagles hit a three out of the gate but the Falcons dropped in the next six points. Following two free throws by Charleston, Gibbs made back-to-back layups to open a 10-point lead (46-36). UC scored the next five points before Leslie Huffman responded with five points of her own to preserve the 10-point advantage with 3:49 left in the third. Over the final three minutes of the period, the Golden Eagles used a 7-0 run to make it a three-point game (51-48) going to the fourth period.

The fourth period was a defensive struggle as neither team gave up much. Fairmont State was able to work the ball around and found Leila Jones for a three on the left win. Charleston scored a second-chance basket before a Brunny layup on the fast break to give FSU a 58-52 advantage.

Defensively, the Falcons started to put the clamps down by forcing a couple of turnovers and grabbing rebounds. Meanwhile, the team continued to expand its lead to 14 (66-52) before the next UC basket. Of the final 13 possessions by Charleston, the Falcons got 12 stops while making crucial free throws to secure the 19-point victory. In the fourth, FSU outscored Charleston 24-8.

"First off, credit to Charleston. I thought they played extremely hard," Anderson mentioned. "I think our team had a lot of fight in them and when the fourth quarter came, they buckled down. They did exactly what they needed to do and made sure they got the stops they needed and that comes from experience."

"In the fourth quarter we were all locked in and shoutout to Aaliyah Brunny because she gave us the edge we needed and willing to do whatever we needed to win," Alyssa DeAngelo mentioned.

"A lot our success comes watching everyone else have success on the floor," Leslie Huffman added. "I might not see something but seeing what is working for everyone else and just letting the game settle and finding opportunities."

Fairmont State will now face the fourth-seeded Frostburg State Bobcats in the MEC Tournament Semifinals on Saturday, March 8. Start time is set for 12:00 p.m.