NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- Freshman point guard Kylie McKennen (Triadelphia, W.Va./Wheeling Park) dished out a career-high 15 assists and sophomore forward Alie Seto (Allison, Pa./Brownsville) scored 26 points as W&J downed Westminster 80-68 in Presidents' Athletic Conference play.
 
After overcoming a five-point deficit in the second quarter, a late surge helped W&J take a 36-33 lead into halftime. Seto led a balanced offensive attack with 11 points in the first half. Another major catalyst for the offense was McKennen, who matched her season-high for assists in the first half alone, registering eight helpers. 
 
An early 5-0 spurt by the Titans gave the hosts a slight 38-36 less than a minute into the third. However, the Presidents would respond in a big way, using a 19-2 run over the next 5:10 to take control of the contest. Sparking the run was Seto, who opened the spurt with a three-point play that pushed W&J back in front at 39-38. 
 
Freshman guard Aleena McDaniel (Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown) then recorded six of the next 11 points for the Red and Black to swell the President lead into double figures (50-38) at the 6:11 mark. Senior forward Danielle Parker (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) then capped the run with a three-point basket to make the score 55-40 with 4:09 to play in the third. 
 
W&J closed out the quarter with back-to-back baskets from Seto and sophomore forward Maria Lawhorne (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) to take a 61-46 advantage after 30 minutes.
 
Early in the fourth, the Presidents stretched the lead to 20 points (71-51) at the 6:27 mark when Parker drained a triple on McKennen's 15th assist of the contest.  
 
Westminster refused to go quietly, answering with a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to cut the W&J lead back into single digits (73-64) with 2:32 to play. The Titans would get within eight points (76-68) before the Presidents closed out the game with four free throws down the stretch.
 
Seto put together a strong offensive showing, recording a game-best 26 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field and 8-of-9 makes from the free throw line. Seto chipped in seven rebounds and four steals to round out her stat line. 
 
Parker contributed 20 points, five rebounds and three steals, while Lawhorne finished with 11 points and five rebounds.  
 
McKennen filled the stat sheet, finishing with seven points, six rebounds and a season-high four steals to go along with her 15 assists. 
 
The 15 assists for McKennen were the second most in school history, trailing only a 16-assist performance by Ann Aigner against Hiram College, exactly 31 years ago to the day on Jan. 30, 1988. The 15 assists were the fourth most by a NCAA Division III player this season and the most by a PAC player in a single game since Devin Beasley recorded 18 on Jan. 18, 2014. 
 
Aside from the gaudy offensive performances, pressure defense was critical for W&J, as the visitors outscored the Titans by a 34-14 margin in points off of turnovers and collected a season-high 19 steals. 
 
The win improves W&J to 10-2 in PAC play and 14-6 overall. Meanwhile, the Titans dropped to 5-7 in the league and 7-14 overall. 
 
The Presidents host Thiel College at the Henry Memorial Center this Saturday, Feb. 2. The contest will tip-off at 1 p.m. inside the Henry Memorial Center. In conjunction with the PAC doubleheader against the Tomcats, W&J will host Community Day.