WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Feb. 18) – Needing a win over visiting Chatham during Wednesday night's regular season home finale to stay alive for the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) tournament, the Waynesburg University women's basketball team had a packed crowd at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse behind it as it faced off with the Cougars. The Jackets kept the score close with Chatham throughout most of the night and staged a furious comeback in the fourth quarter, but it ultimately wasn't enough, as Chatham pulled away late for a 60-51 win.
The first 5:30 of play featured two ties and three lead changes as a three pointer by junior
Kara McFadden (Painesville, Ohio / Fairport Harding) put the Jackets up 9-8. Unfortunately, that was Waynesburg's (12-12, 8-7) last lead of the evening, as seven-straight points by Chatham (17-6, 10-5) put the Cougars ahead 15-9. The visitors still led by six (21-15) at the end of the opening quarter.
Waynesburg twice cut its deficit to four in the second quarter, but points were hard to come by over the second half of the period, and Chatham led 34-23 at the break.
Defense continued to dominate the game throughout the third quarter, as the two teams combined for just 17 points over that period. The Cougars scored 10 of those points and led 44-30 heading into the fourth.
Chatham's lead grew to as many 18 (51-33) during the final 10 minutes, but Waynesburg wasn't ready to give up just yet. Feeding off the home crowd, the Jackets pieced together a 14-1 run that lasted over six minutes. A three pointer by McFadden cut the deficit down to 52-47 with 86 seconds left in the contest.
Waynesburg pulled to within four points (54-5) with 21 seconds showing on the clock, but the Cougars connected on all six of its foul shots over the final 18 seconds to close out the win.
McFadden and senior
Kalista Friday (Woodsfield, Ohio / Monroe Central) tied for the team lead with nine points each. Junior
Julz Mohrbacher (Freedom, Pa. / Freedom) added eight, while junior
Mia Henkins (Morgantown, W.Va. / Morgantown) and senior
Clara-Paige Miller (Waynesburg, Pa. / Waynesburg Central) logged seven points each on the evening.
Miller pulled down a team-high eight rebounds, while Friday handed out a game-high seven assists.
The Yellow Jackets wrap up the 2025-26 schedule with a road trip to Washington & Jefferson on Saturday, Feb. 21. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
