PITTSBURGH, Pa. (Feb. 8) – The Waynesburg University women's basketball team ended its brief two-game winning streak with a convincing 76-62 win at Chatham on Wednesday night. The victory avenged a 78-69 loss to the Cougars back on Jan. 5.
Waynesburg (13-9, 9-6) shook off a bit of a slow start that saw the Jackets fall behind 9-4 after 4:13 of play. However, the Orange and Black rebounded in a big way by pouring in 12-straight points over the next 2:30. Senior guard
Katie Gehlmann led the surge with a pair of three-pointers. By the time the first quarter came to an end, Waynesburg held a 19-13 advantage.
Chatham (10-11, 5-10) regained the lead thanks to a 9-2 run that opened the second quarter and put the Cougars ahead 22-21 with just over six minutes until halftime. Momentum swung back to the visitors' side thanks to a 6-0 burst that featured baskets from senior forward
Haley Delaney, junior guard
Rachel Eng and junior forward
Addy Knetzer and gave Waynesburg a 27-22 edge.
By the time halftime came around, the Jackets had moved ahead of Chatham 35-29. Waynesburg's defense played a major role in building the lead, as the Cougars were held to just 27.8 percent from the field.
Waynesburg never trailed over the entirety of the second half and built leads as large as 17 points on multiple occasions. The victory, combined with a Bethany loss, moved the Jackets back into a tie for fourth place in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) standings.
Gehlmann tied a personal season high with a contest-best 21 points, most of which came on four successful three-point attempts and seven-of-nine free throw tries. She added seven rebounds and a game-high four assists to a very successful night on the court.
Knetzer and Starre both notched double-doubles in the victory. Knetzer went for 12 points and a team-high 12 rebounds, while Starre contributed 10 points, 11 rebounds and three assists to the winning effort. Senior forward
Haley Delaney piled up five blocks to go along with seven points and nine rebounds. She now ranks second in the PAC in blocks per game (2.3).
The Jackets held sizeable advantages in field goal percentage (41 percent to 31 percent) and rebounding (56-to-41).
Waynesburg returns home on Saturday to host Thomas More for senior day. Tipoff at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
