WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Jan. 9) – The Waynesburg University women's basketball team hosted Saint Vincent, the top team in the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), for a  Wednesday night showdown at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse. The Yellow Jackets battled back through some early struggles and nearly pulled off their biggest win of the season before coming up just short in a 69-64 setback.
 
Things looked bleak for Waynesburg (3-11, 1-5), which trailed 38-27 at the halftime break. Saint Vincent (12-2, 6-0) grew its lead to as many as 20 points multiple times in the third quarter. Trailing 53-33 with under four minutes left in the period, the flow of the game started to change and the Jackets began to claw their way back into the contest.
 
Waynesburg closed the third on a 10-3 run that included a pair of three pointers from sophomore guard Elena McDermott (Slippery Rock, Pa. / Slippery Rock) and another from senior guard Julie Deklaven (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Seton LaSalle). Heading into the fourth quarter, the Jackets pulled to within 13 points (56-43) of the heavily favored Cats.
 
Waynesburg inched to within 10 points of tying the contest up with 6:24 showing on the fourth-quarter clock. A layup by freshman forward Brooke Fuller (Allison Park, Pa. / Hampton) followed by another McDermott trey and a layup by senior guard Monica Starre (Jewett, Ohio / Carrollton) made the score 61-58 with 3:36 still left in the game.
 
After Saint Vincent doubled its lead at 64-58, back-to-back layups by freshman guard Haley Porter (Belmont, Ohio / Union Local) cut the Jacket deficit down to just two points (64-62) with a minute remaining on the clock. Unfortunately, Waynesburg couldn't finish off the comeback as the visiting team scored five of the final seven points of the contest.
 
Porter led the Waynesburg offense with a team-high 15 points, which was just one point off the game high. She also dished a game-high four assists and swiped two steals.
 
McDermott added 12 points, all on three-pointers, over 26 bench minutes. Starre chipped in 10 points, a game-high five steals, eight rebounds and three assists. Sophomore Andrea Orlosky (Shelocta, Pa. / West Shamokin) finished one rebound shy of the game lead with nine boards to go along with nine points and two assists.
 
In just her second collegiate game following a preseason injury, freshman Kacey Kastroll (South Park, Pa. / South Park) went for 10 points and five rebounds.
 
Waynesburg will look to carry the momentum from Wednesday night's strong finish into Saturday's road PAC matchup at Thiel. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.