WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Macie McCracken (North Wildwood, N.J./Wildwood) scored a team and career-high 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting off the bench to help lead the West Chester University women's basketball team (4-2, 1-0) to a 72-66 victory over Pitt-Johnstown (2-5, 0-1) on Saturday afternoon.
McCracken was one of three Golden Rams in double figures for West Chester as
Ava Mazur (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional) and
Alivia Mauz (Williamstown, N.J./Williamstown) scored 13 and 11, respectively. West Chester scored 42 of its 72 points off the bench on Saturday afternoon as
Erin Daley (Lafayette Hill, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) and
Bella Mazur (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional) led the starting five with eight points each.
West Chester shot north of 50.0 % in three of the four quarters on Saturday and finished the game shooting 49.2 % (30-of-61) from the field, including a 2-for-15 (13.3 %) effort from beyond the arc, while also going 10-of-17 (58.8 %) from the line. West Chester shot a game-best 66.7 % (8-of-12) from the field in the fourth, including a made three, led by 11 points from McCracken as the rookie guard set yet another new career-high in the victory.
West Chester trailed only briefly on Saturday and never by more than three points as the Golden Rams found themselves down three midway through the first quarter before carrying a narrow 14-13 lead into the second. In a game that featured nine ties and four lead changes, West Chester stretched its lead to as many as 14 with under three minutes to play after an 11-0 run and led for nearly 35 of the 40 minutes on Saturday afternoon.
West Chester stretched its one-point lead after the first quarter to three heading into the half after leading by as many as eight after a 7-0 run with just under seven minutes to play in the first half.
The Golden Rams never led by more than five in the third quarter, which was tight throughout as it featured six ties and two lead changes, thanks in part to a 5-0 run out of the halftime break by the Mountain Cats. UPJ outscored its hosts 20-9 in the third, despite West Chester shooting 57.1 % (8-of-14) from the field as Liv West and Sophia Ott tied to lead all scorers with seven points each for the visitors.
In the fourth, West Chester stretched its lead from just two (49-47) into a 14-point lead thanks to an 11-0 run, which gave the hosts a 70-56 lead with three minutes to play after
Ava Mazur completed a three-point play on a driving layup. Pitt-Johnstown would not go away quietly, going on an 8-0 run over the last almost two-and-a-half minutes to finish the game on its best run of the day, but it was not enough to erase a 14-point deficit as West Chester held on for a 72-66 victory to open Crossover play.
West Chester ended the game with a 50-34 lead in points in the paint, along with a 13-10 lead in second-chance points, despite being outrebounded by a slim 42-41 margin. West Chester also lost the turnover battle (16-15) but won the points off turnovers and points off the break battles with a 19-15 lead in points off turnovers and an 8-4 lead in points off the break.
Marianna Papazoglou (North Wildwood, N.J./Wildwood Catholic) led West Chester in rebounding with 10, while
Kimi Sayson (Oceanport, N.J./Shore Regional) led the team in assists with four to go along with four points on 2-of-6 shooting.
Pitt-Johnstown shot 36.1 % (26-of-72) from the field, including a 6-for-23 (26.1 %) effort from beyond the arc, while also going 8-for-10 (80.0 %) at the free throw line. Sophia Ott led all scorers with 23 points off the bench on 10-of-14 shooting, along with a team-best eight rebounds in the loss.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action on December 16 at Wilmington at 6 p.m. before wrapping up its 2025 slate at home against Gannon and Clarion on December 20 and 21.
