WEST CHESTER, Pa.- The West Chester women's basketball team (7-17, 5-13) returned to action on Wednesday night in the final game of its three-game homestand against PSAC East leader Kutztown (22-5, 14-3). West Chester battled throughout the night but it was Kutztown who prevailed by a 75-51 final score.
West Chester held an early lead, leading by three points in the early going of the first period but Kutztown went on an impressive run, which spanned the end of the first quarter into the second to take a lead it would never relinquish en route to a 26-point victory over the Golden Rams.
Kyra Jefferson (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom) was the lone Golden Ram in double figures, finishing with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting while
Leah Johnson (Columbus, N.J./Notre Dame) led the team in rebounding with eight rebounds and six points along with seven assists in the setback.
For Kutztown, Rylee Derr led four players in double figures with 15 points on 5-of-12 shooting with all five makes coming from beyond the arc. Casey Remolde narrowly missed a double-double, finishing with eight points and nine rebounds in the victory.
West Chester got out to an early lead in the first quarter, holding a 6-3 lead early in the frame before leading by two (10-8) with 4:50 to play in the opening period. Kutztown closed the frame on a 17-4 run to take a 25-14 lead into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, Kutztown continued to extend its advantage, eventually leading by 18 points (40-22) heading into the halftime break.
In the first half,
Rayah Fink (Dover, Pa./Dover) and
Alexa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) tied for the team lead in scoring with five points each while Rylee Derr led the Golden Bears with 12 points and four rebounds as one of two Kutztown players in double figures in the first half. As at eam, West Chester shot 35.3 % from the field in the first quarter before shooting just 20.0 % from the field in the second quarter, shooting 28.1 % from the field on the half and 33.3 % from beyond the arc to trail heading to the halftime break.
Out of the halftime break, Kutztown continued its strong play, outscoring West Chester 16-11 over the first five and a half minutes of the half to take a 56-33 lead. Kutztown continued its efforts in the final moments of the third quarter, eventually carrying a 63-37 lead into the fourth and final quarter of play.
In the fourth, West Chester outscored Kutztown 14-12 but it was not enough to erase the early deficit, falling to the Golden Bears by a 75-51 final.
As a team, West Chester shot 34.9 % from the field and just 23.5 % from three-point range while also going a perfect 3-for-3 from the line in the setback.
For its part, Kutztown shot 45.2 % from the field and 45.5 % from three while also shooting 50.0 % from the line to earn the road victory.
Despite the 26-point victory, Kutztown only won the rebound battle by one rebound (38-37) while tying with West Chester in turnovers with 14 turnovers each as West Chester ended the game with a slim 8-5 lead in second-chance points while Kutztown ended with a 17-11 lead in points off turnovers and a 12-4 lead in fast break points.
West Chester will be back in action on Saturday afternoon at Lock Haven with opening tip in that contest set for 1 p.m.
