STEUBENVILLE, Ohio – Four players scored in double figures as the Washington & Jefferson College women's basketball team breezed to a 94-42 road win over Franciscan Wednesday afternoon in their first Presidents' Athletic Conference match of the season.
The hot-shooting Presidents picked up the win to begin their conference record on a high note, 1-0, and improve their overall record to 3-1. Franciscan drops to 0-4 overall and 0-1 in PAC play.
This marks the second straight year the Presidents have logged a 94-point win over a PAC opponent after claiming a 94-58 victory over Geneva last winter. Both 94-point victories are the highest single game total for W&J since they scored 95 in a win at Waynesburg University on Jan. 11, 2020.
W&J made 37-of-65 field goal attempts (56.9 percent) and drained 11 three-pointers in the victory. W&J dished out season-highs in assists (25) and rebounds (50). The Presidents held a major 50-22 advantage over the Barons on the boards.
W&J kept at least a 10-point advantage in all but the third quarter of play. The Presidents started strong off of seven points from Bryn Bezjak (Uniontown, Pa./Albert Gallatin), six from Meghan Dryburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin), a three pointer from Stellanie Loutsion (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) and a driving fastbreak layup from Adalynn Cherry (Altoona, Pa./Altoona Area) to quickly kick off the game with an 18-3 lead with 4:06 left to go in the first quarter.
Two sets of good free throws and a layup from Loutsion set the score at 24-8 with just under two minutes to go in the first quarter. Marina Grado (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway) picked up the final bucket for the Red & Black on a fastbreak layup that would send W&J into the second 10-minute quarter with a gracious 26-10 lead.
The Red & Black broke away offensively in the second quarter outscoring their opponent 28-6. Raegan Kadlecik (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour) drained a 3-pointer to kick off the scoring spree at the beginning of the quarter. Dryburgh, Bezjak, Katie Kovalchick (Shelocta, Pa./Indiana Area) and Halena Hill (Pittsburgh, Pa./Oakland Catholic) added two two-point buckets each in the second quarter carnage. Hannah Archer (Lowell, Ohio/Fort Frye) drained a shot from beyond the arc as well as a drive to the paint to contribute five points to the surge. Cherry and freshman Jordyn Wolfe (Pittsburgh, Pa. Montour) each made a bucket to round out the scoring with Wolfes' layup being the first points of her collegiate career.
The Presidents headed into the half with a 38-point advantage, ahead 54-16.
Despite the Barons being able to come out after the half and slow the Presidents roll, only allowing W&J 16 points and cutting the deficit to 70-31, the Red & Black came back out to outscore Franciscan by a 24-11 margin in the final 10 minutes of play to claim the 94-42 victory.
Bezjak led the team offensively with 13 points and was joined in the double digits by Dryburgh, Loutsion and Wolfe. Dryburgh also tallied her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds in the game with a near triple-double for the second-consecutive game adding six assists.
Wolfe scored her first collegiate points in the outing and then some, tallying 10 on the night.
W&J is set to host their first home Presidents' Athletic Conference matchup against Westminster College on Saturday (Nov. 23). Start time is set for 1 p.m. in the Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
