Melanie Oliver (40) steals the ball from Salem's
Nadia Fleming taking it down court for the score

(Photos by Drew Moody)

On the heels of being named WVIAC Freshman of the Year, Melanie Oliver showed Civic Center fans the kind of play that earned her the honor.

The lead never changed hands once Glenville shot out in front Wednesday evening in Charleston.

The Lady Pioneers defeated Salem International 68-48 in the quarterfinals of the WVIAC tournament.

Oliver and Karina Kendrick controlled the boards at both ends. Kendrick nabbed 11 rebounds; Oliver had seven, scoring several times off offensive rebounds.

Christine DiSabato (#4 left) spins Salem player around as she
yanks the ball away. Rachel Redick (#22 right) reaches in for
the steal during first half play Wednesday night at Charleston

Play was aggressive on both sides.

Oliver was lead scorer with 16 and matched Rachel Redick's four steals. Redick ended play with 15 points.

From the tip-off Glenville led the game, doubling Salem International's score in less than five minutes leading 13-6.

Lauren Strong had a hot hand from the three point range, netting four of five attempts scoring a total of 14 points. Casey Taylor had 10.

The combination of defensive pressure and fast breaks wore Salem down fairly early in the game.

The score at half-time 35-20.

Lauren Strong (#14 left) had a hot hand Wednesday night at the
Civic Center, scoring 14 points. On this trip up the court Salem's
Jeannie Saunders (33) got her hand on during a steal attempt. Karina Kendrick (#20 right) gets off a jumper over Salem's Jeannie Saunders

The second half heated up when Glenville's Casey Taylor cleanly blocked a Salem shot, and with three about 17 minutes left the score stood at 40-25.

About mid-way through the second half Rachel Redick went on a scoring streak hitting three triples, scoring 11 unanswered points putting the Lady Pioneers up 28 with just over five minutes remaining.

Redick, a three time All-American was named WVIAC Player of the Year earlier this week.

Rachel Redick on a baseline drive Wednesday night.
The all-time leading scorer in the conference was held to 15 points

The Lady Pioneers managed shooting 40-percent for the game. In the first half Glenville connected with 13 of 31 for 41.9-percent. The stats faired worse during second half play dropping to 38.2-percent for 13 of 34.

Glenville's women now advance to Friday's semi-finals. The No. 1 Lady Pioneers (28-2) will face No. 4 Concord (21-8) at 1 p.m. No. 3 West Liberty (20-9) will face No. 2 University of Charleston (23-7) at 3 p.m.

Melanie Oliver fighting for rebound