Box Score
WAYNESBURG, Pa. (March 5) – The Waynesburg University women's basketball team extended their season by one more game on Saturday with an impressive 73-59 win over Penn State Behrend in the semifinals of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) South tournament on Saturday.
After opening up an 11-10 lead following 5:35 of play, the top-seeded Yellow Jackets (20-7) took off on a 7-0 run to build up an 18-10 advantage over the fourth-seeded Lions (20-9). Waynesburg never trailed by less than six points throughout the remainder of the first half, and built up leads as large 13 points (29-16) during the first 20 minutes of action.
After taking a 32-23 lead into the locker room at halftime, the Jackets got a three-pointer from junior point guard Hannah Hunter to regain a 12-point edged (35-23). However, Behrend's three-point shooting kept them in the game and allowed them to draw as close as four points on multiple occasions in the second half.
Waynesburg's defense remained strong down the stretch and it yielded the game-clinching baskets that the home team needed over the final minutes of action to ice the win. Three of those baskets, combined with a pair of free throws, allowed the Jackets to turn a nine-point lead with 4:28 showing on the clock, into a 73-56 advantage with 20 seconds to play. It was the largest lead of the game for either team.
A big reason for the Waynesburg victory was a quick, aggressive Yellow Jacket defense. The home team forced an impressive 28 turnovers, including 16 steals, and coughed the ball up just 13 times. The Jackets also did a better job of not only getting to the free throw line, but converting their tries as well. The Orange and Black knocked down 16-of-24 shots from the stripe, while the Lions made just nine-of-15 attempts from the line.
Before a two-point basket by freshman guard Megan Sowers ended the scoring for Waynesburg, just four Yellow Jackets recorded points, but they all had affective nights. Senior forward Elisha Jones led the way with her second-straight 20-point performance of the tournament by going off for a game-high 23 in the victory. Jones also swatted away a game-high five blocks. Sophomore guard Brittany Spencer, who didn't score at all in Waynesburg's quarterfinal win over Moravian, had a double-double night with 18 points and 10 rebounds. The Baltimore native also dished out a game-high five assists.
Sophomore guard Jessi Drayer added 17 points and a contest-best five steals to the winning effort, while Hunter chipped in 13 points, six rebounds, three steals and three assists.
Waynesburg's win moved them into tomorrow's championship game, where they will face second-seeded Catholic University for the ECAC South title. Catholic knocked off sixth-seeded Alvernia 64-53 in the late game of a Saturday doubleheader. Tip-off for the finals is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse.
A live audio webcast of the game, courtesy of 99.5-FM WCYJ, Waynesburg's campus radio station can be heard by clicking here.
