Guest leads EMU to seventh straight win on Senior Day

The EMU women seem to be playing their best basketball at the right time of year. Senior Jonae Guest (Dumfries, Va./Potomac) pounded in 18 points with 13 rebounds to lead the Royals to a 76-55 thumping of Randolph College Saturday afternoon, extending the women’s winning streak to seven in a row. It was a fantastic final home game for Guest, who notched her 10th double double over the past 12 games on Senior Recognition Day.

Eastern Mennonite sews up a top-four seed in the upcoming ODAC Tournament with the win as they improve to 16-6 overall and 11-3 in the ODAC. The Royals earn a bye into the tourney quarterfinals, which are Friday, Feb. 24, in Salem, Va.

The women wrap up the regular season with tough road games at Randolph-Macon (12-10/7-7 ODAC) on Tuesday and Lynchburg (18-5/12-2 ODAC) on Saturday.

Despite looking at a zone defense from Randolph from the start, EMU earned offensive rebounds on four of their first five possessions and vaulted to a 10-2 lead. The WildCats eventually got within 11-9 before the women scored six straight from the free throw line to rebuild the margin.

The Royals continued to execute their game plan well in the second, hitting outside shots along with interior points from Guest, as they pushed the lead to 42-25 by the break. Guest nearly had her double double by halftime, coming in with 12 points and nine boards.

EMU continued to find and hit open looks from the outside in the third, nailing five triples. Myneshia Walker (Freeman, Va./Brunswick) put in the final two, with the last one building the lead to 65-39.

The women scored at least 20 points in each of the first three periods and coasted through the fourth with the backups on the floor. Guest was the last starter to leave with 3:22 to go, earning a standing ovation as she walked off the home court for the final time.

Guest provided the muscle inside for the win, including eight offensive rebounds. The center also found her open teammates, setting a career high with three assists.

Walker finished with a team-high 20 points and seven rebounds while Lexi Deffenbaugh (Fishersville, Va./Wilson Memorial) shot 4-for-7 from outside for 12 points along with five assists. Chloe Roach (Leesburg, Va./Tuscarora) added 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Jess Washington (Chesapeake, Va./Great Bridge) tied Guest with 13 boards.

Eastern Mennonite connected on a season-best 11 triples, finishing 11-24 for 46%. They also had a 51-39 rebounding advantage.

Korin Harris dumped in 23 points to lead Randolph, but her teammates didn’t offer much help. Darian Thornton was the second-leading scorer for the WildCats with seven points.