WASHINGTON, Pa. -- Valerie Dunlap and Taylor Cortazzo combined for 45 points as the Washington & Jefferson women's basketball team overcame a halftime defecit in a 78-68 win over Grove City.

Dunlap led all players with 25 points and 12 boards while also blocking five shots. Cortazzo finished with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting and dished out five assists, pulled in four rebounds and recorded three steals.

The first half was mainly back and forth with four ties and seven lead changes. Dunlap tied the game for the fourth time of the half at the 5:27 mark with a layup as part of an 11-2 run for the Presidents which opened up a seven-point lead, the largest of the half for either team. A three-pointer by Alexa DelGreco with 2:17 to play in the period made the score 36-29.

Grove City, however, scored the final nine points of the half, including four by Natalija Galens and an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer by Kelsey Shirey, to take a 38-36 lead into intermission.

The guests began the second half how the first ended, with a Shirey triple, and then a layup by Kathryn Erbelding to take their largest lead of the game, 43-26, 1:11 into the frame.

A Cortazzo three-pointer started a 12-4 spurt for the Presidents that gave W&J the lead, 48-47, with 14:31 to play. Grove City answered with a fastbreak layup to re-take the lead before W&J used a seven-point spurt to open up a 55-49 margin with 11:45 on the clock. Three free throws by the Presidents made the run 10-1, 58-50.

With a 13-3 jaunt that took less than five minutes, W&J opened the largest lead of the game to take the spread to 16 points with 4:53 remaining, 71-55, and held on for the 78-68 win.

DelGreco finished with eight points and a game-high six assists. Beka Bellhy tallied eight points and five boards.

The Presidents, who entered the game fifth in the nation in three-point percentage (39.0), knocked down 7-of-10 attempts from long distance.

W&J improves to 13-4 on the season and 7-3 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference. The Presidents return to the court on Wednesday, Jan. 28 with a 5:30 p.m. tip-off at Thiel. Grove City falls to 7-10 overall and 5-5 in the league.