WEST CHESTER, Pa.-Looking to wrap up its home regular-season slate with a victory, the West Chester University women's basketball team (14-13, 11-9) was back in action on Wednesday night against rival Millersville (15-12, 10-10). West Chester jumped out to an early lead and never fully relinquished this advantage en route to a 76-58 victory over the visiting Marauders.
Tonight's win greatly improved West Chester's chances of earning a home game on Monday evening, as the Golden Rams will now win head-to-head tiebreaks over Millersville and East Stroudsburg.
West Chester trailed only briefly in the victory, leading by as many as 26 later in the fourth quarter with four players in double figures led by 22 second-half points from
Michelle Kozicki (Wilmington, Del./Padua) and 17 from
Bella Mazur (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional).
Erin Daley (Lafayette Hill, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) added 15 and corralled 13 rebounds for another double-double, while
Anna McTamney (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) chipped in 11 points.
West Chester shot 46.4 % (26-of-56) from the field in the victory, including a 2-for-10 (20.0 %) effort from beyond the arc. The Golden Rams also went 22-for-29 (75.9 %) at the free throw line.
West Chester got out to a 23-10 lead after the first quarter thanks in part to a 13-0 run midway through the frame. McTamney led West Chester in scoring in the first quarter, scoring nine quick points to help the Golden Rams build their early advantage.
In the second, West Chester shot 43.8 % (7-of-16), which was on-bar with its first-quarter shooting percentage of 46.7 % (7-of-15), but the Golden Rams did not go the free throw line and committed five turnovers as the Marauders cut the lead to six (37-31) at the half.
West Chester shot 45.2 % (14-of-31) from the field in the first half and 9-for-10 (90.0 %) from the line, with all nine makes coming in the first quarter.
Bella Mazur led all scorers early with 16 first-half points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field. Makiah Shaw led Millersville with 10 points as the Marauders shot 37.0 % (10-of-27) from the field, including a 2-for-9 (22.2 %) effort from deep, while also going 9-for-9 at the line.
West Chester outscored its guests 23-12 in the third quarter, shooting 53.3 % (8-of-15) from the field to take a 60-43 lead into the fourth.
After a scoreless first half, Kozicki scored 11 points in the third to lead by as many as 20 late in the frame.
West Chester stretched its lead to 24 with under five minutes to play in the fourth before holding a 76-57 lead with 1:28 to play in regulation en route to a 78-56 victory.
Makiah Shaw led Millersville in scoring with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Kali March added 10 points of her own.
Millersville shot 34.7 % (17-of-49) from the field, including a 4-for-17 (23.5 %) from deep, while also going 20-for-23 (87.0%) at the free throw line.
West Chester ended the game with a 39-29 lead on the glass and a 20-5 lead in second-chance points. West Chester also ended the game with a 19-13 lead in turnovers and a 19-14 lead in points off turnovers along with a 40-18 lead in points in the paint.
Up Next:
West Chester will be back in action on Saturday for its regular-season finale at Kutztown beginning at 1 p.m.
