WASHINGTON, Pa. –
Katie Kovalchick (Shelocta, Pa./Indiana Area) matched a career high by pouring in 29 points as the Washington & Jefferson College women's basketball team (12-5, 7-1 PAC) registered a 76-47 victory over visiting Allegheny College (8-9, 5-3 PAC) Saturday afternoon on Alumni Day at Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
Kovalchick added five rebounds and four blocks to go along with her 29-point effort.
Stellanie Loutsion (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) reached double-digit scoring with 14 points to go along with a career-high nine rebounds.
Riley DeRubbo (Washington, Pa./Trinity) finished with eight points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals in an all-around effort.
After suffering its first conference loss Wednesday, the Presidents flipped the script in the Saturday matinee with the Gators. The two teams battled throughout the first half. Allegheny used a fast start to jump out to an early 8-3 lead just minutes into the game. Kovalchick and Loutsion helped W&J counter with a 13-2 run to help the Red and Black to their first lead of the game. Loutsion recorded a pair of three-point plays during the run.
Her triple at the 4:50 mark made it a 16-10 W&J lead.
Jaden Wan (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock) converted a layup late in the quarter to make it a 23-16 advantage after the opening 10 minutes of play.
Allegheny countered with an 11-2 run to regain the lead on a layup at the 6:05 mark. A three-point field goal by Loutsion quickly pushed W&J back in front of 28-27 less than a minute later. The Presidents defense locked up over the final four minutes of the half, eventually taking a 36-29 advantage into halftime following a late driving layup by
Marina Grado (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway).
The Presidents put the game away with a dominant second half. W&J outscored Allegheny by a 24-11 margin. The Presidents shot 55.6 percent in the third quarter while holding the Gators to 20 percent shooting. The Red and Black used a 13-0 run during the final five minutes of the third to put things out of reach. A three-point field goal by Grado and a layup by
Raegan Kadlecik (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour) swelled the advantage to 56-38 at the 1:43 mark of the third. W&J led 60-40 going into the fourth quarter.
W&J continued to pour it on during the final 10 minutes. Allegheny was limited to just seven points and made just one field goal over the final quarter.
W&J held decisive advantages in points in the paint (36-10), fast break points (13-0) and rebounds (48-37). The Presidents shot 45.2 percent (28-62) from the field and made 13-of-17 free throws (76.5 percent). Defensively, W&J limited the Gators to just 25 percent shooting from the field and 4-of-16 (25 percent) from three.
W&J travels to Chatham University on Wednesday (January 28) for a league contest. The Presidents and Cougars are scheduled to tip off their PAC South matchup at 5 p.m. in Pittsburgh. W&J downed Chatham by a 61-52 score in early December.
