Box Score
CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky. (Feb. 11) – The Waynesburg University women’s basketball team traveled to Kentucky on Thursday afternoon to square off with Thomas More, the 15th-ranked team in Division III.
For the first 10 minutes of play, the Yellow Jackets played right with one of the top teams in the country. However, a big run by the Saints before halftime allowed them to take control of the contest and win the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) showdown by the final score of 74-56. The loss dropped the Jackets to 8-14 on the season and 5-8 in conference play. The win was the Saints’ 20th of the season (20-2) and they are now 11-1 and leading the PAC.
The two teams battled back-and-forth as the game got underway. Trailing 15-13, the Yellow Jackets got a three-pointer from freshman forward Paige Pearce, that put her team up 16-15 with 10 minutes to play in the half. With 7:53 to go in the period, the game was tied at 20-20, but Thomas More proceeded to go on a 17-0 run over the next five-plus minutes to open up a 37-20 lead with 2:01 showing on the clock.
Waynesburg was able to trim the lead to 37-24 before halftime and pulled to within 11 points (37-26) after a lay-up by senior point guard Kristen Lucci early in the second half. Unfortunately, that was as close as the Jackets could get to upsetting the PAC power, which held leads as large as 26 points.
Though it came in a losing effort, the Jackets got a game-high 17 points from junior forward Elisha Jones. Waynesburg also boasted the top rebounder in the contest, senior guard Johnna Deco, who pulled down a game-best 11 rebounds. Sophomore Morgan Hoone chipped in 10 points for the visiting team.
Thomas More’s offensive attack featured a trio of double-digit scorers, including Chelsea Tolliver, who poured in a team-high 16 points.
The Jackets return to the court on Saturday, Feb. 13, when they head to Saint Vincent to face the Bearcats for a 6 p.m. tip-off.