WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Coming off its third win in a row after defeating ESU on the road on Saturday afternoon, the West Chester women's basketball team (10-7, 7-4) begins a busy week on Monday night vs Shepherd (0-16, 0-11) starting at 5:30 p.m. in Hollinger Field House.
Series Information
West Chester enters play trailing 7-2 in the all-time series vs the Rams, including three losses a year ago, the last of which came in the PSAC Tournament opening round at Shepherd in a 61-51 decision, which brought the season to a close. The last time West Chester defeated Shepherd was in the 2013 season as a part of the Carol Eckman Classic, and WCU has never defeated the Rams in a PSAC contest.
After earning a spot in the PSAC Tournament with a senior day win over ESU, West Chester ventured to Shepherdstown, West Virginia, for the opening round game and hung with the Rams throughout before eventually falling 61-51. West Chester was well within striking distance at the half, but a mid-second half run by Shepherd gave the Rams a 17-point lead, which they would never fully relinquish.
Leah Johnson led West Chester in scoring with 12 points, while
Sarah Holweg (current AC) and
Justyn Roberts finished with 11 each.
Flock Talk
Looking to run its winning streak to three in a row, West Chester made the trip up to the Pocono's on Saturday afternoon to take on rival ESU. West Chester never trailed, eventually leading by as many as 30 late in the third quarter after opening the game with a 12-0 run as the Golden Rams cruised to a 76-50 win over ESU and their 10th win of the season.
Leah Johnson and
Emily McAteer both registered 20+ point performances and double-doubles as Johnson, who joined the 1,000-point club in the win, finished with 21 points and 11 assists, while McAteer had 20 points and 10 rebounds to go along with a team-high three blocks. West Chester shot very well from the field, shooting 55.8 % and 62.5 % from deep in the road victory.
Needing just four points to become the 21st Golden Ram to score 1,000 points at WCU,
Leah Johnson did this and much, much more on Saturday at East Stroudsburg. Johnson got her 1,000th point out of the way early with a perfect 2-for-2 trip to the line before exploding for 17 more points and 11 assists to help lead West Chester past ESU by a 76-50 final on Saturday afternoon. Johnson is the first to accomplish this feat since Porscha Speller in 2017-18, and she joins current coaches
Kiera Wooden and
Allison Hostetter on the list.
In addition to her scoring, which is best on the team, averaging 16.1 points per game, McAteer ranks first on the team and third in the league in rebounding, corralling an average of 9.3 rebounds per game with nine double-doubles on the season, which ranks her second in the PSAC in double-doubles. McAteer is also one of just 19 players in all of Division II women's basketball and one of four in the Atlantic Region to register nine or more double-doubles already this season.
Saturday afternoon's victory saw West Chester improve in most statistical categories, including an increase in scoring average of 75.5 points per game, which remains second-best in the PSAC just 0.1 behind league-leader Edinboro while also lowering the opponents scoring to below 70 points per game (69.8/g). Wooden's Golden Rams also rank second in the PSAC East in rebounding, trailing only Shippensburg with a 42.9 rebound per game average. As a team, West Chester continues to shoot the ball well from inside the arc and from the line, shooting 44.1 % from the field despite a 30.4 % three-point shooting percentage while also shooting 76.3 %, both of which are best in the PSAC East.
Scouting Shepherd
Shepherd enters play still in search of its first win of the season after falling to Mansfield by a 72-63 final on the road on Saturday afternoon. Shepherd fell behind early and, despite outscoring Mansfield in the second half, was unable to climb out of the early deficit in the nine-point setback. The Rams shot 34.4 % from the field and 33.3 % from three, both of which are up from their season averages of 33.6 % and 28.7 % while also shooting 68.8 % from the line. Meaghan Shipley, who leads the team in scoring average on the year at 10.3 points per game, led the way on Saturday as well, finishing with 20 points, while Cara Minor, who is second on the squad in rebounding, averaging 5.5 per game, pulled down a team-high nine rebounds in the setback.
Shepherd has been looking for a way to replace the departure of guard Abby Beeman who led the Rams in a shot of categories a year ago, including assists, as he was one of the top facilitators in all of the DII women's basketball. Shipley has filled the role as the primary facilitator this year, averaging a team-best 1.8 assists per game while also ranking second on the team in steals, averaging 1.0 steal per contest. Sophomore guard Sydney Bolles has also had to step into a larger role this season, currently ranking second on the team in scoring, averaging 9.7 points per game while also leading the way in rebounding, averaging 6.6 rebounds per contest for the Rams under first-year head coach Julie Kaufman.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Wednesday night at Millersville beginning at 5:30 p.m.
