The Richmond Roadrunners pulled away in the fourth quarter to defeat the Virginia Vitesse 63-59 on Sept. 7 in the first round of the playoffs. A 9-0 run midway through the quarter gave Richmond control as the Vitesse went several minutes without a basket. 

“That gave us some breathing room and then, regardless of the mistakes that we made, we still had that lead to recover,” coach Barvenia Wooten said. She added that Richmond’s ability to draw 22 fouls came from attacking the basket with intensity. 

Forward Andrea Barbour led the Roadrunners with 26 points and said the matchup was as hard-fought as expected. 

“Every time we play them, expect an intense game,” she said. “We were resilient, we finished strong.” 

Kala Green added 10 points for Richmond, while Wooten praised Barbour’s impact despite a few miscues. 

“AB is what we call ‘Her.’ She shows up. She knows she made some mental hiccups, but at the end of the day, I know she’ll make up for it. She’ll get a defensive rebound, she’ll get a steal.” 

Mia Savory led the Vitesse with 20 points. The Roadrunners will travel to Baltimore to face the Maryland Lady Wolves on Sept. 13 at 4 p.m.