MANSFIELD, Pa.-West Chester (15-7, 12-4) got off to a slow start on Saturday afternoon at Mansfield (2-18, 1-15) but still trailed for less than 10 minutes of regulation as the Golden Rams erased an early eight-point deficit for a 74-71 road victory on Saturday afternoon.
West Chester found itself behind by as many as eight early in the first quarter before storming back and eventually holding a 15-point lead midway through the third period. The double-digit lead was not meant to last, however, as Mansfield put together a strong fourth-quarter performance, which saw the Mountaineers pull back to within a point with just a minute to play in regulation, and nearly force overtime at the buzzer with a last-second three-point attempt as time expired.
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) turned in a career day, finishing with 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting to go along with a career-high 15 rebounds as West Chester came all the way back and held off a late Mansfield attempt to earn its eighth victory in a row. Kozicki was one of three players in double figures for the Golden Rams as
Emily McAteer (Thornton, Pa./Garnet Valley), who hit a clutch layup with under a minute to play, finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, while
Leah Johnson (Columbus, N.J./Notre Dame) came away with 10 points, six rebounds, and five assists in the victory.
Alexa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) finished the afternoon with seven points of her own, all of which came at the line, including a pair of makes in the final seconds as West Chester held on for the 74-71 victory.
Danae Ellzy led the way for Mansfield in the loss, turning in a career performance of her own, finishing with 23 points, including a 5-for-9 effort from deep, while Jasmine Hilton registered a double-double of her own with 19 points and 10 rebounds on Saturday afternoon.
Mansfield opened the game on a 10-2 run over the first three minutes before West Chester began to battle back. Mansfield continued to lead until 2:31 remained in the first quarter before the Golden Rams 19-10 run to close out the frame gave the Purple and Gold a 21-20 lead heading into the second quarter.
Early in the second, West Chester stretched its lead to 28-23 after a successful trip to the line by
Alexa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield), but Mansfield pulled back within three (28-25) quickly to stay well within striking distance. As the quarter continued, West Chester pushed the lead to 36-30 with 3:47 to play in the first half before Mansfield countered with a 7-2 run to trail by just one with 2:32 to play. Uninterested in fully sacrificing the lead it had built since its slow start to the game, West Chester closed the half with a 41-39 lead after a late layup by McAteer, which proved to be the final made basket of the first half.
West Chester opened the second half in a big way, racing out to a 15-point (54-39) lead after outscoring Mansfield 14-0 over the first two-and-a-half minutes of the second half. Over the balance of the quarter, Mansfield worked hard to close the gap, eventually narrowing the WCU lead to 10 points (62-52) heading into the fourth, going 6-of-11 from the field in the final seven minutes of the third to close the gap.
Mansfield started the fourth with an 8-3 run to close the gap to 65-60 with under seven minutes to play in regulation. Mansfield cut the deficit back to just one (70-69), which is how the score would remain until under a minute to play in regulation. Mansfield eventually pulled back within three (68-65) with 4:11 to play before Kennedy Stroup cut the lead to just one (68-67) after a pair of makes at the free throw line. McAteer extended the lead back to three moments later with a pair of made free throws of her own, setting up what would be a great finish in the final three minutes of regulation.
McAteer extended the lead to 72-69 with a driving layup before Mansfield answered back to make it a 72-71 score once again heading into the final seconds. Abbonizio extended the lead back to three 74-71, which, after a last-second three-point attempt by Mansfield missed its mark, West Chester would hold on to win by.
West Chester ended the game with a 37.7 % (23-of-61) field-goal percentage and a 31.3 (5-of-16) three-point shooting percentage after going just 3-of-18 from the field in the fourth and 0-for-6 from deep in the second half. Despite the difficult shooting performance down the second half stretch, West Chester shot well from the line throughout the game, shooting 85.2 % (23-of-27) from the line, including an 11-for-12 effort from the stripe in the second half.
For its part, Mansfield shot 45.2 % (28-of-62) from the field and 37.9 % (11-of-29) from three-point territory while also shooting 4-for-6 (66.7 %) from the line in the setback.
West Chester ended the game with a 42-32 lead in rebounding, including a 14-7 advantage on the offensive glass, which translated into an 11-6 lead in second-chance points in the win. West Chester also ended the game with a 16-4 lead in points off the break and a 30-24 lead in points in the paint in the road triumph.
Up Next:
West Chester returns to action on Monday night at Shippensburg beginning at 6 p.m.
