BETHANY, W.Va. –
Stellanie Loutsion (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) reached 1,000 career points as the Washington & Jefferson women's basketball team (8-4, 3-0 PAC) defeated Bethany, 64-50, in Presidents' Athletic Conference play Wednesday evening at the Hummel Fieldhouse in West Virginia.
Loutsion finished with a game-high 15 points in the victory. Loutsion added three rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists in the winning effort. She becomes the 22nd player in program history to reach the 1,000-point mark. Loutsion is the fourth W&J player to reach the plateau this decade, as she joins Alie Seto '21, Meghan Dryburgh '25 and Bryn Bezjak '25, who have all joined the club since 2020.
Raegan Kadlecik (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour) enjoyed a memorable evening as well. The junior guard registered her first collegiate double-double effort, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Jaden Wan (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock) and
Jacey Mullen (New Springfield, Ohio/Springfield Local) provided valuable contributions off the bench. Wan tallied 11 points while Mulllen added eight markers.
Marina Grado (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway) produced team highs in steals (4) and assists (4) in the victory.
The two teams battled through a back-and-forth opening quarter of play that featured four ties. The Bison jumped out to a quick lead behind four-straight points to open the game.
Riley DeRubbo (Washington, Pa./Trinity) helped the Presidents even the score at 5-5 with a three-point make at the 4:48 mark. The two teams continued to trade points for the remainder of the quarter. A late layup by Mullen pushed the Presidents in front by a 13-11 margin after the opening 10 minutes.
W&J picked things up in the second quarter. Loutsion helped the President add to their lead and reached her milestone in the process. Loutsion drained a three-point field goal and tacked on a fastbreak layup following a steal by Grado on the ensuing Bison possession. That spurt was part of a 11-2 run by the Presidents. A layup by Mullen and free throws by Wan extended the W&J lead into double figures at 28-18. The Bison were able to respond with four-straight points in the final minute of the half to cut the W&J advantage to six at halftime.
The Bison battled throughout the third quarter to cut the Presidents lead in half. The hosts outscored the Presidents by a 18-15 margin during the frame. Consecutive baskets by DeRubbo and Kovalchick pushed the Presidents lead to 32-24 at the 7:14 mark. Later in the quarter, W&J led by a 36-30 margin. However, the Bison responded with eight of the next 10 points to even the score at 38-38. Loutsion capped the quarter scoring with a driving layup to make it a 43-40 advantage for W&J entering the fourth.
The Presidents turned in a strong fourth quarter effort to secure the victory. The Presidents shot 50 percent (5-10) from the field and 75 percent (9-12) from the line over the final 10 minutes.
One of the top free throw shooting teams in Division III, W&J converted at a 79.2 percent clip in the game, making 19-of-24 attempts overall. The Presidents limited the Bison to just one made three-pointer on 18 attempts (5.6 percent). Bethany held a 40-33 advantage in rebounding.
W&J hosts Geneva College for a Presidents' Athletic Conference on Saturday (Jan. 10). The league game is scheduled for 1 p.m. W&J will recognize its 2025 PAC Championship team in conjunction with Saturday's doubleheader.
