Virginia Tech Women's Basketball marched into McCamish Pavilion and knocked off previously undefeated No. 13 Georgia Tech 105-94 in a dramatic double overtime finish to capture its second ACC victory of the season and the biggest win of the Megan Duffy era.
The Hokies (11-4, 2-2 ACC) victory over the Yellow Jackets (15-1, 3-1 ACC) marks their first triumph over an AP Top 25 opponent since February 18, 2024, and first ranked win under Megan Duffy.
Tech took an early 26-23 lead to end the first quarter courtesy of redshirt sophomore guard Carleigh Wenzel, who scored 11 points and knocked down three triples in the first 10 minutes of play.
Wenzel finished the contest with a team-high 24 points on 5-9 shooting from behind the arc and recorded her first career double-double with 10 assists. Yet, she was not the only Hokie who finished in double figures.
In fact, it was the first time in Tech’s school history that all five starters (Wenzel, Lani White, Rose Micheaux, Matilda Ekh, and Carys Baker) scored 17+ points in a game. The previous record was set in 1993 at home against Southern Miss with 13+, with Tech tying that record in 2004 at home against Boston College.
This time, the Hokies made history on the road in a high-scoring scoring battle against Georgia Tech. While Wenzel led the Hokies in scoring, White and Micheaux followed closely, notching 20 points apiece, and Micheaux joined Wenzel in double-double territory, grabbing 12 rebounds.
Ekh and Baker brought up the rear for the Hokies’ starters' scoring, each putting up 17 points. The starting five combined for 98 of the Hokies' 105 points in this game and were quite good overall, but the Hokies still had some work to do down five entering the fourth quarter.
However, the Hokies are no stranger to comeback victories on the road under Megan Duffy’s new reign. This season, the Hokies have trailed by seven points at Georgia and Miami entering the final quarter of play. Including VT’s comeback victory over GT, the Hokies have outscored those three aforementioned opponents 92-49 from the final quarter of play and plus any required overtimes, and have found ways to win away from home.
It was tough to stop GT’s two leading scorers, Kara Dunn (33) and Tonie Morgan (28), who combined for 61 of the Yellow Jackets’ 94 points. Morgan rolled in the game, tying layup with 12.8 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to its first overtime, and Dunn made the selfless at the final play of the first OT to swing the ball to Rusne Augustine, who buried a three-pointer as time expired to force a second overtime.
However, their combined efforts were insufficient to contain the Hokies, who stepped their game up in the second overtime as the Hokies outscored the Yellow Jackets 13-2, while holding Georgia Tech to 0-6 from the field in the second extra period, capping off an impressive performance and an important signature win for their NCAA Tournament resume.
Tech hosts Wake Forest next on Sunday, January 12, at 2:00pm on ACC Network Extra as they looks to capture their third-straight victory.
