LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- After cruising past Clarion in its crossover finale on Saturday afternoon, the West Chester women's basketball team (8-7, 5-4) is ready to shift its attention back to PSAC East play, beginning with a matchup vs Lock Haven (7-7, 5-4) on Wednesday evening beginning at 5:30.
Series Information
West Chester enters play with a 34-14 lead in the all-time series vs Lock Haven after splitting the series in each of the last two seasons, which ended an 18-1 run by the Golden Rams, which included a 13-game winning streak in the series from 2008 to January 2017. Last season, West Chester and Lock Haven each picked up wins at home, with West Chester taking the first meeting before Lock Haven won the second between the two teams.
In the most recent meeting from a year ago, which was at Lock Haven, West Chester led by a point at the end of the first quarter. However, a 25-4 second-quarter performance by the Bald Eagles, which included West Chester shooting just 10.0 % from the field in the frame, gave Lock Haven a lead it would never relinquish in an 85-59 victory over the Golden Rams.
Leah Johnson (Columbus, N.J./Notre Dame) led the team in scoring with 14 points as the lone Golden Ram in double figures in the setback.
Flock Talk
West Chester enters off a convincing 70-51 win over Clarion on Saturday afternoon that saw West Chester lead by as many as 24 early in the second half after holding the Bald Eagles to just 16 points in the first half, the lowest by an opponent so far this season. West Chester had five players in double figures in the victory, led by a 17-point and 12-rebound performance by
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) as one of three players with a double-double.
Emily McAteer (Thornton, Pa./Garnet Valley) and Johnson also registered double-doubles in this victory, marking the first time since December 2013 that West Chester had three players register a double-double in the same game.
Johnson finished the game on Saturday afternoon with 12 points, which now has her less than 20 points (16) away from becoming the 21
st Golden Ram to score 1,000 career points. When Johnson reaches this milestone, she will be the first to do so since Porscha Speller in 2017-18 and will also join current coaches
Kiera Wooden and
Allison Hostetter on the exclusive list of players to eclipse the 1,000-point plateau in their WCU careers.
Offensive versatility has been a major key for West Chester, and given the team flexibility, it has not had in quite some time. While
Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) leads the team in scoring, averaging 16.1 points per game, she is far from the only option offensive as she is one of four Golden Rams averaging in double figures on the year. McAteer is second on the team in scoring while also leading the team and ranking fourth in the league in rebounding, averaging 9.3 per game. McAteer's work on the glass and in the scoring column has led to her registering eight double-doubles on the season, which ranks her in a tie for second in the league in this category while also being one of just 25 players in DII women's basketball with eight or more on the season. For her part, Johnson is third on the team in scoring while also distributing an average of 7.4 assists per game, which is first in the PSAC and third in all of Division II women's basketball, while also remaining one of eight players in the Nation to record a triple-double this season.
As a team, West Chester remains one of the top offensive units in the PSAC, averaging 76.1 points per game thanks to a 43.6 % field-goal percentage and a very efficient 76.9 % effort from the line. WCU also ranks among the top rebounding teams in the league, averaging 42.3 rebounds per game with a margin of +5.8, which is tied for second-best in the league.
Scouting Lock Haven
Lock Haven enters play following a loss to Kutztown on Saturday afternoon by a 72-65 final. Lock Haven fell behind by six in the first quarter before pulling back within a basket at the halftime break, with the score 36-33 in favor of Kutztown. The game remained a three-point game heading into the fourth before Kutztown closed out the seven-point victory. Alana Robinson, who is second on the team in scoring, averaging 12.4 points per game, led the way with 22 points, while senior forward Jackie Fetsko, who is second on the team in rebounding, averaging 4.6 per game, led with five rebounds in the setback. Brooke Lawyer, the team's leading scorer, averaging 12.8 points per game, sunk a team-high three three-pointers in the loss as the Bald Eagles were 6-for-16 from range in the setback.
For the year, Lock Haven is averaging 63.9 points per game and shooting 38.8 % from the field and 29.3 % from beyond the arc, all of which the team improved upon on Saturday afternoon, scoring 65 points on 42.9 % shooting from the field and 37.5 % from three-point territory. Lock Haven struggled on the glass on Saturday afternoon, losing the rebounding battle 27-36 after winning the battle throughout much of the year with a 37.5-35.8 advantage in this category.
Up Next:
West Chester will continue its road trip with a visit to East Stroudsburg on Saturday afternoon beginning at 1 p.m.
