West Chester at Shepherd
Game Details: January 3 I 5:30 P.M.
Location: Butcher Center (Shepherdstown, W.V.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Video
Series: 6-7
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Shepherd Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Fan Advisory
Fans attending the game on Friday night at Shepherd are advised that Shepherd has recently instituted a Clear Bag policy for all home athletic events in the Butcher Center. The full policy is available here.
Last Time Out
Friday night’s game will be West Chester’s first game of 2025 and the team’s first game since a narrow 78-73 loss at the hands of No. 12/5 Seton Hill back on December 21st. Looking for its second win in as many tries and another upset victory over a top-15 foe, West Chester held a slim 24-22 lead at the end of the first quarter but found itself down 11 at the break after being outscored 27-14 in the second. West Chester got the deficit to three late in the third before a late 7-0 Seton Hill run gave the Griffins a 10-point lead heading into the fourth. In the fourth, West Chester went on another run, cutting the deficit to just three (76-73) with 10 seconds to play. An off-balance shot by Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) was off the mark and left West Chester with little choice but to foul in the closing seconds. West Chester sent Seton Hill to the line, and Griffins hit both free throws to escape with a 78-73 victory over the Golden Rams. Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) scored a team-high 26 points on 11-of-21 shooting and 12 rebounds, while Bella Mazur (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional) added 19 points and seven assists. McTamney and Rachel Conran (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) added 11 points each as West Chester shot 44.3 % (27-of-61) from the field, including a 5-for-15 (33.3 %) effort from three-point range while also going 14-for-18 (77.8 %) at the line.
Flock Talk
Averaging 66.0 points per game on 39.2 % shooting from the field and 26.2 % from beyond the arc, West Chester remains one of the best free throw shooting teams in the country, hitting 81.0 % (166-of-205), averaging nearly 14 makes per game through the first half of the season. West Chester holds its opponents to an average of 70.1 points per game on 40.2 % shooting from the field and 30.7 % from three-point range. Despite a 10.3 rebound per game average by Kozicki, which ranks third best in the PSAC and second best in the PSAC Esat, West Chester trails 38.6-38.1 in rebounding this year, although the Golden Rams have managed to build an 18.9-18.2 lead in the turnover battle despite 43 turnovers in the season opener at West Virginia State. In addition to her rebounding, Kozicki also leads the team and ranks second in the PSAC in scoring, averaging 20.5 points per game, while McTamney is second in scoring, averaging 14.6 per game. Kozicki is also ninth in DII and second in the PSAC in double-doubles with six already this season, trailing only Emily Chmiel from East Stroudsburg, who has seven this year. The senior forward is also 11th in Division II in points per game and 17th in rebounds per game, ranking ninth in DII (first in the PSAC) in defensive rebounds per game, averaging 7.8 per contest.
The Mazur twins are in the midst of an excellent rookie campaign for the Golden Rams as Bella ranks third on the team in scoring, averaging 9.1 per game after a career-high 19 points vs Seton Hill. This 19-point effort was Bella’s second consecutive double-digit performance (15 at UPJ) and fourth in the last six games after going for 14 vs Jefferson and Cal. Ava Mazur (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional) retains the single-game scoring lead between the two sisters after scoring 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting in 35 minutes vs Cal, while also handing out nine assists in that victory.
Chasing 1K
West Chester presented Kozicki with a commemorative ball in honor of her 1,000th collegiate point before the game vs. Seton Hill on December 21 and may very well be duplicating this recognition on Monday night before the game vs. Lock Haven. Kozicki enters play on Friday just 16 points shy of her 1,000th point as a Golden Ram after beginning her career at La Salle. McTamney is also chasing her 1,000th point at WCU after scoring her 1000th overall earlier this season, as the senior guard remains 71 points away from this milestone.
We Are Honored
In the final weekly awards of the 2024 half of the season, Kozicki captured her second consecutive PSAC Weekly honor, earning PSAC East Athlete of the Week honors after being named Defensive Player of the Week earlier in December. The senior has now scored 20 points or more in each of the last four games and five of the last six, with five double-doubles to her name during that time. This included a 35-point, 12 rebound, two block, and two steal effort at Pitt-Johnstown on December 17, which led West Chester to an OT victory over the Mountain Cats. Kozicki’s 35-point effort in that game was the Golden Ram's best single-game performance since Leah Johnson set a new program record for single-game points with 44 in the 2023 NCAA Tournament vs. California (Pa.).
Opening East Play
Under head coach Kiera Wooden, West Chester is 5-4 in PSAC East openers, with its last victory in an East opener coming on January 4, 2023, at home against Mansfield behind Leah Johnson’s first career triple-double and a double-double by Emily McAteer. West Chester dropped its East opener a year ago at Lock Haven by a 79-76 final in overtime.
After starting her career a perfect 4-0 in PSAC East openers, Wooden has gone just 1-4 in her last five openers.
Happy New Year
West Chester is 6-3 in its first game of the New Year against Division II competition under head coach Kiera Wooden. The caveat of vs. DII foes remains an important note, as in 2018-19, the team began its 2019 with a road test and setback at Division I foe Liberty.
Friday night’s game is also the first of four games in eight days for West Chester. The Golden Rams will face Lock Haven at home on Monday, East Stroudsburg on the road on Wednesday, and Kutztown at home on Saturday, which will also be Alumni Day for the Golden Rams.
Working Overtime
West Chester picked up its second OT win of the season on December 17 at Pitt-Johnstown, which marks the first time since 2015-16 that WCU has won two OT games in the same season. (1/23/16 Def. LHU; 2/10/16 Def. ESU). WCU played in OT twice in 2019-20 and has not played in OT more than twice since 2015-16, when the team went 2-1 in the extra period.
Ooh, Free Stuff!
West Chester is fourth in DII in free throw percentage, shooting 81.0 % at the line this season. WCU has hit over 70.0 % in 11 of 12 games and 80.0 % or better in seven of 11, including a 91.7 % effort vs Edinboro.
Series History
West Chester will look to even the series back at 7-7 on Friday night after winning each of the last four meetings to halt a five-game losing streak vs the Rams. West Chester swept the season series in each of the last two seasons and has not lost at Shepherd since a 61-51 loss in February 2022, which was also the team’s last loss against the Rams.
Welcome Home
Friday will be a Homecoming for new assistant coach Marley McLaughlin, who was a standout for Shepherd from 2017-22.
Scouting Shepherd
Shepherd enters play with an overall record of 4-8 and a mark of 1-4 in league play after getting its first PSAC victory of the season by a 64-57 final over Pitt-Johnstown on December 21. This victory halted Shepherd's three-game losing streak, including losses at the hands of No. 18 IUP, Clarion, and No. 4 Gannon. While this is the first meeting of the year between the Rams and the Golden Rams, West Chester, and Shepherd have seen each other as the two sides traveled to Charleston (W.V.) to open the year vs. UC and West Virginia State, falling to Charleston 83-78 and WVSU 91-60.
In its last action before the Holiday Break, Shepherd was locked in a tight battle against UPJ, holding a slim one-point lead with 3:10 to play before closing the game on a 7-1 run to seal the victory. Samiyah Nasir led the way with 13 points as one of three Rams in double figures. Kara Wehner added 12 points of her own and 10 points from Jenna Liska. Shepherd shot 35.4 % (23-of-65) from the field and 20.7 % (6-of-29) from three-point range while also going 12-for-17 (75.0 %) at the free throw line.
For the year, Shepherd enters play averaging 65.8 points on 39.1 % shooting from the field, including a 27.7 % effort from three-point range, while hitting just 63.6 % at the free throw line. Shepherd’s opponents average 72.3 points per game on 41.1 % shooting, including a 29.8 % effort from deep, while holding a 40.5-38.6 lead in rebounding and a 19.5-20.9 advantage in the turnover battle.
Wehner is first on the team in scoring, averaging 11.1 points per game, while Annie Hunt is a close second, averaging 8.0 per game of her own. Wehner also leads the team in assists, averaging 3.6 per game, while Carmaya Bowman is first in rebounding, averaging 5.7 rebounds per game.
