By Danielle Kochka, Sports Information Student Assistant

WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson women's basketball team topped Waynesburg, 90-84, in a hard-fought game. The victory moves the Presidents' win-streak to a season-high eight games. 
 
Taylor Cortazzo jumped out of the gate, scoring 11 of the Presidents' 20 first-quarter points, shooting 4-5 from the field.
 
A layup by the Yellow Jackets to open the second quarter tied the game up at 20-20. Beka Bellhy added 10 first-half points to the offensive effort for the Presidents, but Waynesburg was able to hold onto momentum and stay with W&J's explosive offense. The teams went into halftime knotted at 37-37.
 
The second half saw a surge in Waynesburg's offense, led by the three-point shooting of Heather Davis and Kassidy O'Keefe. However, W&J was able to hold on to a slim four-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
 
At 1:44 in the third quarter B. Bellhy secured a six-point run for the Presidents and a nine point margin with a layup, assisted by Cortazzo. Only a few seconds later, at 1:22, Amirah Moore pushed that margin to 10 points with a layup of her own.
 
A strong fourth quarter presence from B. Bellhy propelled W&J to victory. She collected 13 points in the fourth and completed 13 of her 15 free throws to finish the game with a game-high 29 points. B. Bellhy moves within six points of the top five on the W&J career scoring list with 1,393 points, behind Regina Dixon's 1,399.
 
Moore added 14 points and seven assists in the game, as well as swiping a game-high five steals.
 
Rachel Bellhy and Cortazzo each finished with 13 points. The Bellhy sisters combined for 16 rebounds, each collecting eight boards.
 
W&J moves to 18-3 overall, and 13-1 in the Presidents' Athletic Conference. The Presidents will travel to Saint Vincent on Wednesday, February 10th to take on the Bearcats in another PAC contest. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 pm.