INSTITUTE, W.V.- Despite accomplishing it feat, which it had not accomplished since the 2019 season with five players (including four of five starters) scoring in double figures, led by a pair of 14-point efforts from
Emily McAteer (Thornton, Pa./Garnet Valley) and Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) the West Chester women's basketball team (0-1) fell to defending National Champion No. 8 Glenville State (1-0) in the season opener by a 104-78 final.
West Chester led for much of the first half, holding a six-point (39-33) lead at the break and leading for almost 16 minutes of action before a second-half surge by the Pioneers halted any thoughts of a season-opening upset as Glenville State roared back to avoid what would have been just its second loss in 37 games.
After shooting below 40 % in the first quarter and sub 30 % in the second quarter, Glenville State saw its offense come to life in the second half, shooting a blistering 63.6 % from the field and 61.5 % from three in the third before shooting 61.1 % from the field in the fourth quarter to earn the comeback victory over the upset-minded Golden Rams.
McAteer and McTamney led the way with 14 points each on 6-of-11 and 6-of-10 shooting while
Maya Carter (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) finished with 13 to go along with 12 from
Leah Johnson (Columbus, N.J./Notre Dame) and 10 from
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua Academy). For Glenville State, Mickayla Perdue led the way in scoring, pouring in 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting as one of four Pioneers in double figures and the lone player on either side to reach the 20-point plateau on opening night.
In the first quarter, Glenville State jumped out to an early 6-1 lead before eventually stretching the lead to 10-5 with 5:14 to play in the opening frame. West Chester responded quickly, going on a 5-0 run to even the score at 10-10, closing the frame on a 16-7 run, thanks in large part to an eight-point opening quarter from
Emily McAteer (Thornton, Pa./Garnet Valley), playing her first game in a Golden Ram uniform to take a 21-17 lead into the second.
With a four-point lead to start the second quarter, West Chester went to work on extending the lead, stretching it to as many as nine points (31-22) with 4:39 to play in the half before Glenville State mounted a comeback of its own, cutting the lead to 39-33 heading into the halftime break.
McAteer and
Maya Carter (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) led the team in scoring through the opening half, finishing the first 20 minutes with eight points each while
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) and Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) chipped in six points each as well to help lead a balanced first-half attack for the Golden Rams.
Glenville State opened the second on a 13-6 run, erasing its halftime deficit and taking a slim 46-45 lead with just under two minutes gone in the third quarter of action. With its first lead since the early going of the first quarter, Glenville State began to extend its advantage, stretching the lead to 51-47 before an
Alexa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) made it a one-score game once more. The Pioneers stretched the lead out to 56-51, matching their largest lead of the contest from the first quarter, prompting a quick timeout by the Golden Rams. Out of the timeout, Glenville State continued its torrent third quarter scoring effort, eventually outscoring West Chester 40-25 in the period to carry a 73-64 lead into the fourth.
Glenville State continued to extend its lead early in the fourth, taking its largest lead of the game of 11 points early in the frame before eventually stretching that advantage to a 104-78 victory.
As a team, West Chester shot 46.4 % (32-of-69) from the field and 11.1 % (1-of-9) from three while also shooting 59.1 % (13-of-22) from the line. Glenville State finished the game with a 47.4 % (37-of-78) field goal percentage and a 38.5 % (15-of-39) three-point shooting percentage, thanks largely to its stellar second-half performance.
West Chester did manage out rebound its non-league foes, ending the game with a 47-40 lead in rebounding and a subsequent 52-44 advantage in points in the paint, thanks in part to 11 second-chance points in the opening-night setback.
Up Next;
West Chester returns to action on Sunday afternoon vs host school West Virginia State beginning at 3:30 p.m. inside the Walker Convocation Center.
