EAST STROUDSBURG, Pa.- Following its second win in a row, this time on the road over Lock Haven, the West Chester women's basketball team (9-7, 6-4) will look to make it three in a row against East Stroudsburg (9-7, 5-5) on Saturday afternoon beginning at 1 p.m.
Series Information
West Chester enters play with an 80-33 lead in the all-time series, including a sweep of the Warriors a season ago, which helped West Chester qualify for the PSAC Tournament, avoiding a streak of missing the postseason. These two victories halted a three-game losing streak in the series for West Chester, although the Golden Rams have still won six of the last 10 meetings between the two sides.
In need of a victory over ESU on Senior Day to secure a spot in the PSAC Tournament, West Chester pulled away for a 63-60 victory behind a career day from current assistant coach
Sarah Holweg who scored 15 points in the victory. West Chester trailed by as many as 17 and was down 20-5 after the first quarter but rallied back and used a 22-5 third-quarter performance to fully erase its deficit and hold on for a 63-60 senior day victory over the Warriors.
Flock Talk
Following a victory over Clarion on Saturday afternoon, West Chester returned to action on Wednesday night at Lock Haven and led almost the entire way, trailing only briefly in the first quarter en route to a 66-57 road victory. West Chester stretched its lead to as many as 12 in the third after a 9-0 run before Lock Haven reeled the Golden Rams back in, making things interesting late before WCU could put the game away at the line.
Emily McAteer led four players in double figures with 17 points, while
Anna McTamney registered a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Leah Johnson, who ranks third on the team in scoring, averaging 14.6 points per game, trailing McTamney and McAteer, who are tied for first, averaging 15.8 per game, continues her trek toward her 1000
th career point, now sitting just four points shy of becoming the 21
st player in school history to reach this milestone. In addition to her prolific scoring, which will see her reach her 1000
th point in just her third year on the court for the Golden Rams, Johnson also ranks among the nation's leaders in assists, averaging 7.2 per game, which is third-best in Division II.
As a team, West Chester has one of the top offensive units in the PSAC, ranking second in the league and 23
rd in the Nation in points per game, averaging 75.4 per contest thanks to a 43.5 % field-goal shooting effort on the year to go along with a 77.0 % free-throw shooting percentage on the year, which is 20
th in Division II. West Chester also has one of the top rebounding teams in the PSAC, averaging 42.4 rebounds per game, which is second in the PSAC, thanks to a team-best 9.3 rebound per game average by McAteer.
Scouting East Stroudsburg
East Stroudsburg enters with an identical 9-7 mark overall and a record of 5-5 in league play after earning picking up a comeback victory over Shepherd on Wednesday night. ESU found itself behind early and trailed for much of the first quarter before coming back to take a 15-13 lead into the second. With a two-point lead, ESU was eventually able to pull away, rolling to a 69-54 victory behind a 30-point and six-assist effort from Ryan Weise. Weise, who led the team in scoring thanks to six made three's in the victory, leads the PSAC in 30-point games this year, with four in 16 games this season. East Stroudsburg shot 42.4 % from the field and 63.2 % from the line in the victory while also going 7-of-24 from beyond the arc.
On the year, ESU has shot 37.9 % from the field and 38.1 % from deep while also shooting just 58.4 % from the line through 16 games. The Warriors have won the turnover battle with some consistency, holding a +1.2 advantage in turnover margin; however, they have also frequently lost the rebounding battle, being outrebounded 34.8-38.9 on the year, including a 47-37 loss in this category on Wednesday night. Weise leads the team in most major statistical categories, including scoring (18.3/g), rebounding (6.1/g), assists (5.1/g), and steals (1.7/g) as a key piece in most of the Warriors victories so far this season.
Up Next:
West Chester will have a quick turnaround as the team is back in action on Monday night at home vs. Shepherd beginning at 5:30 p.m.
