MANSFIELD, Pa.-Winners of three in a row and four of five to open 2025, the West Chester University women's basketball team (8-10, 5-6) put its winning streak to the test once again on Wednesday night at PSAC East foe Mansfield (8-10, 4-8). West Chester mounted a furious comeback in the second half, which saw the Golden Rams take the lead midway through the fourth quarter and pull back to within one with 30 seconds to play but fell to the host Mountaineers by a 77-72 final.
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) matched her career-high with a game-high 35 points on 13-of-27 shooting from the field and corralled 10 rebounds to notch her ninth double-double of the 2024-25 season, which remains among the top-10 players in all of Division II women's basketball.
Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Meeting) was the lone other Golden Ram in double figures, finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds along with a team-best four steals in the five-point loss.
Alainna Hopta (York, Pa./West York) also had a strong night for head coach
Kiera Wooden and the Golden Rams as the junior guard contributed six points with a pair of makes from three-point range along with a game-best eight assists without committing a turnover in the Eastern Division setback.
West Chester struggled mightily from the field in the early going, shooting below 30.0 % from the filed in each of the first quarters, and just 10-of-35 (28.6 %) from the field for the first half. This included a 2-for-11 (18.2 %) effort from three-point range. This cold start to the game combined with a red-hot first half performance by Mansfield, which saw the Mounties shoot 47.2 % (17-of-36) from the field and an even 50.0 % (10-of-20) from three-point range helped Mansfield build up a 24-point lead late in the second quarter and carry a 47-27 lead into the halftime break.
In the third quarter, the momentum began to swing in the direction of the Golden Rams as West Chester shot a solid 53.3 % (8-of-15) from the field, including 2-for-3 from three-point range to outscore its hosts 20-12 and cut the deficit down to 59-47 heading into the fourth quarter. Of Mansfield's 12 third-quarter point only one came via a made field goal as Katie Sheeler knocked down a three with 4:11 to play in the third quarter. The other nine Mansfield points came at the free throw line as the hosts were 9-for-14 at the stripe out of the halftime break.
In the fourth quarter, West Chester opened the frame on a 13-0 run led by six points from Kozicki to take a 61-59 lead with 5:28 to play after a good jumper by
Erin Daley. Mansfield scored its first points of the fourth quarter with 4:58 to play in regulation when Sheeler hit a driving layup to tie the game at 61-61. West Chester snuck back out to a slim lead after a 1-for-2 trip to the line by Kozicki and the two teams found themselves tied once more at 64-64 with 3:24 to play.
Mansfield answered with a 5-0 run, including another three by Sheeler, which was her second made three of the quarter and fifth make of the night to take a 69-64 lead that the hosts would never fully relinquish. Kozicki helped bring West Chester back to within one with an 8-4 run over a 1:14 span, which began with 1:44 to play in regulation but 73-72 was as close as the Golden Rams could get in the five-point loss.
Sheeler was difficult to stop throughout the evening as she scored a game-high 24 points on 6-of-18 shooting, including five makes from distance, while also corralling six rebounds and adding four assist. Sheeler was one of three Mounties in double figures as Paris Anthony added 15 of her own and Kennedy Stroup chipped in 14 points and 10 rebounds off the bench to finish with a double-double. Cydney Stanton nearly recorded a double-double of her own but finished one-point shy as she ended her ninth with 10 rebounds and nine points on 3-of-10 shooting from the field and a 3-for-4 effort at the line.
For the game, Mansfield shot 33.3 % (21-of-63) from the field and 37.1 % (13-of-35) from three-point range, while also going 22-for-28 at the free throw line.
After a strong second-half offensively, West Chester shot 38.0 % (27-of-71) from the field and 27.8 % (5-of-18) from three-point range, while also going an uncharacteristic 13-for-21 (61.9 %) at the free throw line.
Mansfield ended the game with a 53-38 lead in rebounding, including a 15-11 lead on the offensive glass, which resulted in an 11-8 advantage in second-chance points.
West Chester did end the game with a 17-11 lead in turnovers, which resulted in a 21-13 lead in points off turnovers and played a role in a 38-12 lead in points in the paint.
Tonight's setback is West Chester's first loss to Mansfield since a January 2022 loss in Mansfield in overtime.
Up Next:
West Chester will look to get back to its winning ways and return to .500 in East play on Saturday afternoon at home when Bloomsburg visits Hollinger Field House beginning at 1 p.m.
