WEST CHESTER, Pa.- West Chester (14-7, 11-4) never trailed in a statement 69-54 victory over Kutztown (10-11, 8-7) on Wednesday night inside Hollinger Field House. West Chester took an early lead in the first quarter and never relented, leading by as many as 17 points late in the third en route to the 14-point victory over the visiting Golden Bears.
Emily McAteer (Thornton, Pa./Garnet Valley) led all scorers in the win with 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting, including an impressive 4-for-4 effort from beyond the arc, while
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) finished with a double-double, scoring 16 points to go along with 11 rebounds, complimented by a 15-point, seven rebound, and seven assist effort by
Leah Johnson (Columbus, N.J./Notre Dame).
Tonight's victory halted a five-game winning streak for the Golden Bears, giving West Chester its first victory over Kutztown since the February 2019 season while also extending West Chester's impressive winning streak to seven games in a row, its longest streak since the 2017-18 season.
Zara Zerman led the way for Kutztowin the setback, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds, and six assists while also committing six turnovers in the setback. Casey Remolde and Abby Hearn also finished in double figures logging 12 points each, while Hearn posted a team-high eight rebounds in the loss.
West Chester ended the game shooting 42.4 % (28-of-66) from the field thanks to an impressive fourth-quarter shooting effort, which saw the Golden Rams shoot a game-high 55.6 % (10-of-18) from the field to close out the victory. West Chester also shot an even 50.0 % (6-of-12) from three-point range, led by McAteer's perfect 4-for-4 effort from beyond the arc.
West Chester jumped out to a quick 8-0 lead before Kutztown bounced back, trimming the Golden Ram lead to 12-11 before a three-point play by Kozicki gave West Chester a 15-11 lead. The first quarter remained close throughout as Kutztown scored the final points of the opening quarter with a corner three to make the score 19-18 in favor of West Chester heading into the second quarter.
To start the second quarter, both sides had difficulty getting the scoring going as the Golden Rams opened the period on a 4-0 run through the first five minutes, with the lone field goal coming off a three from
Alexa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield). As the half continued, Kutztown pulled back to within a point (27-26) before another late three by McAteer closed out the first half, with West Chester holding a 30-26 lead over its Eastern Division rivals.
McAteer and Kozicki tied for the game-lead in scoring with nine points each on 3-of-4 and 4-of-5 shooting, respectively, as West Chester shot 35.3 % (12-of-34) from the field and 50.0 % (4-of-8) from three with McAteer accounting for three of those makes.
For Kutztown, the Golden Bears shot a solid 66.7 % (8-of-12) from the field in the first quarter ending the opening half shooting 46.2 % (12-of-26) from the field and 15.4 % (2-of-13) from three-point range after a poor second-quarter shooting performance, which saw the Golden Bears muster just eight points, trailing by four heading to the half. Zara Zerman led the way for Kutztown with nine points and four assists as the primary catalyst for the Golden Bear offense.
West Chester opened the second half by outscoring Kutztown early and eventually stretching its lead to as many as 17 with 3:19 to play in the third, thanks in part to an early 11-0 run before Kutztown put together a run of its own to trail by just eight (49-41) at the end of the third.
West Chester and Kutztown traded scores through the early going of the fourth as West Chester held a 57-49 lead with under five minutes to play in regulation. Down the stretch, Kutztown worked to close the gap, but the Golden Rams impressive 10-of-18 from the field in the final 10 minutes led West Chester to the 15-point victory.
After an impressive 66.7 % shooting effort from the field in the first 10 minutes of regulation, Kutztown cooled off significantly, shooting just 41.7 % (20-of-48) from the field and 25.0 % (6-of-24) from three-point range while also shooting 72.7 % (8-of-11) from the line in the setback.
West Chester ended the game with a 40-30 lead in rebounding, which led to a 12-4 lead in second-chance points, while also ending the game with a 16-2 lead in points off turnovers, a 36-20 lead in points in the paint and a 9-6 lead in points off the bench thanks to the nine from Abbonizio.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Saturday afternoon at Mansfield beginning at 1 p.m.
