Parkersburg's Kennedy Porter, who had a 21-point, 17-rebound double-double during the No. 5 Big Reds' 73-66 upset of No. 1 George Washington on Friday afternoon inside Memorial Fieldhouse, wins the jump ball against Patriot Zi'Keryah Myers. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

PARKERSBURG – Frances Guice went off for 31 points and Kennedy Porter had another big double-double here Friday afternoon as No. 5 Parkersburg used 11-2 runs to end the second and third quarters en route to securing a 73-66 Mountain State Athletic Conference upset of previously undefeated and top-ranked George Washington.

The quad-A showdown saw the Big Reds bolt out to an 8-2 lead, trail 24-16 after one and fall behind 35-23 midway through the second only to slice the deficit to 37-34 at intermission, and forge ahead 53-41 entering the fourth.

Jeriyah Pryor, who had a team-high 19 points, made her return to the GW lineup for head coach Jamie LaMaster, but the 18-1 Patriots went ice cold in the third quarter to the tune of a 2-for-16 effort which included missing all 10 attempts from beyond the arc.

Porter, who had 21 points and a game-high 17 caroms, watched teammate Lucie Cline grab nine rebounds as the red and white owned a commanding 44-24 edge on the glass that included 20 offensive boards.

“It gives us a lot to learn from,” admitted coach LaMaster, whose squad trailed 67-54 with 2:20 remaining and closed it to 69-64 with 25 ticks left following a three from Ady Gum, who had eight of her 12 counters in the final minute. “I like to say a situation like this. I know it’s a loss, but I like to use it as we didn’t lose. We’re going to learn for down the road.

No. 5 Parkersburg celebrates following Friday afternoon’s 73-66 victory inside Memorial Fieldhouse against previously unbeaten and top-ranked George Washington. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

“I think we were up 12 at one point in the second and they came out and cut it back to three.

He went into that zone. Combination of two things. Our zone offense or lack of it and our inability to rebound the ball was why we lost this game and then we had a little cold streak there. We couldn’t get a layup to go in.”

The Big Reds, who got a dozen markers from Lauren Flanagan, improved to 12-4 and play Saturday afternoon in the Bluegrass State versus Boyd County.

Brooklyn Allen’s trifecta got the hosts within a pair late in the first, but Pryor ended the first with consecutive 3s, which included a long buzzer-beater via a Mariah Johnson assist to give the visitors their eight-point lead after one.

Zi’Keryah Myers, who had 18 points and a team-high six rebounds while dealing with foul trouble, knocked down a trey for the 35-23 advantage in the second, but the Big Reds made their run as Eden DeBord had back-to-back hoops to end the half.

Parkersburg's Lauren Flanagan uses a screen from teammate Lucie Cline as George Washington's Ady Gum defends during the No. 5 Big Reds' 73-66 upset of No. 1 George Washington on Friday afternoon inside Memorial Fieldhouse. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

“I just kept telling the girls we’re going to be fine and we’ll make a run,” said PHS head man Chris Murray of the halftime mood.

“We are like one of the best teams in the state at being down double digits and cutting it. Like we’re really good at that. It would be great to not (be down).”

PHS opened the second half with eight straight points as Porter had six and Guice a deuce. Although Pryor knocked down a 16-foot jumper, the only other GW field goal came from Gum at the 1:48 mark.

The Big Reds’ 11-2 quarter-ending run featured a three-point play from Guice, a kiss off the glass by Flanagan thanks to a Gracie Lively dime and consecutive Porter putbacks to close the stanza.

“We knew it was going to be a big week,” admitted coach Murray. “Jeriyah has missed some games for them, but we knew she was coming back against us because it’s PHS, George Washington. There was no surprise for us that she was going to play. We knew she was going to play.

Parkersburg's Eden DeBord uses a drop step to score inside against George Washington's Zi'Keryah Myers during the No. 5 Big Reds' 73-66 upset of the No. 1 Patriots on Friday afternoon inside Memorial Fieldhouse. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

“We’re glad she played because it gave us an opportunity to see her early and see how they adjust with her playing. Just proud of our girls. Moved the ball, had a physical presence underneath, just kind of controlled the game and I was pretty happy with it.”

Parkersburg committed half of its dozen turnovers in the first quarter and shot 42.2% (27 of 64) compared to the Patriots’ 44.4% (24 of 54).

“This is not an excuse. It’s just a fact. Jeriyah’s been out for about three weeks plus,” added coach LaMaster. “This was her first time back. I don’t care who you are. It’s going to take time to get back into it. That’s not an excuse.

“She led us tonight, but it’s just getting the flow back. I mean it changes the rotations. It changes everything. As we move forward, I think it will be beneficial for us. Right now we’re just in the getting things figured back out stage.”

George Washington will look to rebound on Wednesday night when Oak Hill invades.

Parkersburg's Brooklyn Allen defends against George Washington's Jeriyah Pryor during the No. 5 Big Reds' 73-66 upset of No. 1 George Washington on Friday afternoon inside Memorial Fieldhouse. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

Contact Jay Bennett at jbennett@newsandsentinel.com