Box Score

WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Feb. 19) – The Waynesburg University women's basketball team put forth a historic effort on Wednesday evening against the second-place team in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC). Not only did the Yellow Jackets end a four-game losing streak to Saint Vincent College, but sixth-year head coach Sam Jones became the program's all-time winningest coach after his team pulled off a monumental comeback to down the Bearcats 79-77.
 
The win improved Jones' overall Waynesburg record to 85-76, which allowed him to pass Rob Phillips' (1988-94) total of 84 victories. Phillips was the first-ever coach of the program.
 
What made Wednesday's win so shocking was the size of the hole that the Yellow Jackets (13-11) found themselves in after a period of play. The Bearcats (17-7, 14-3) raced out to a 51-34 halftime lead and grew that advantage to a game-high 19 points after scoring the first basket of period number two. However, the home team showed that it was un-phased by the near 20-point deficit and immediately went to work on fighting its way back into the entertaining contest.
 
The Orange and Black put together maybe its most impressive 6:26 of play of the entire season that saw the home team turn a 19-point deficit into a two-point lead thanks to a 21-0 run. Junior guard Hayden Giuliani led the attack with four three-pointers, and was helped out by fellow junior guard Rebecca Kerr, who added seven points of her own to the run. Freshman forward Courtney Sargent also dropped in a layup during the offensive explosion.
 
To Saint Vincent's credit, the visitors didn't give up the fight and rebuilt leads as large as seven points as the game wore on. The final result of the contest was very much in doubt until the night's final moments.
 
With 1:12 showing on the game clock, Saint Vincent was clinging to a 77-75 advantage. Nine seconds later, sophomore point guard Lauren Blair drilled a go-ahead three-pointer that gave Waynesburg a one-point edge (78-77). With 11 seconds left to play, Waynesburg possessed the basketball and drew a foul that put Giuliani on the free throw line.
 
The junior canned one-of-two foul shots to put the Jackets up 79-77. SVC had one last chance to pull out a victory, but with three seconds to play, Blair stole the basketball away to seal the win.
 
Giuliani tied for the game high with 18 points on six-of-10 shooting. The Morgantown, W.Va. native canned five-of-eight three-point attempts. Kerr followed with 16 points on seven-of-10 from the floor, while Sargent completed a trio of double-digit scorers after dropping in 13 points. Senior Elaine Hasek paced all players with 12 rebounds, while Blair dished out a game-high eight assists.
 
Waynesburg held sizeable advantages in both three-point shooting and rebounding that played major roles in the win. The Jackets connected on nine-of-26 treys, while SVC made six-of-25 attempts from long range. The Orange and Black yanked down 47 total rebounds, as compared to the Bearcats' 37 boards.
 
Waynesburg still possesses a slim chance to grab a home game in next week's PAC playoffs, but would need Geneva to upset Westminster on Saturday. The Jackets also need to take care of business against Chatham, which they travel to on Saturday for the regular season finale. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.