WEST CHESTER, Pa.-In need of a win to help its PSAC Tournament chances, the West Chester University women's basketball team (10-15, 6-13) fell to PSAC East Regular Season Champion Lock Haven (20-5, 16-3) by a 65-53 final on Saturday afternoon in Hollinger Field House.
Lena Stein (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) led West Chester in scoring with 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting, while
Erin Daley (Lafayette Hill, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) finished with 14 of her own on 6-of-13 shooting as well.
Marianna Papazoglou (North Wildwood, N.J./Wildwood Catholic) was the third and final Golden Ram in double figures with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field.
West Chester battled throughout the afternoon and trimmed the Bald Eagle deficit to as few as two late in the second half, but this was as close as West Chester could get to stunning the Regular Season Champion Bald Eagles, as Lock Haven led for nearly 37 of the 40 minutes in front of a strong Hollinger Field House crowd.
West Chester got out to an early 4-2 lead but found itself down by as many as 10 with 3:30 to play as Lock Haven carried a 17-10 lead into the second quarter.
The visiting Bald Eagles shot 45.5 % (5-of-11) from the field, including a 3-for-6 effort from three-point territory in the opening frame, while West Chester shot just 25.0 % (4-of-16).
Lock Haven stretched its lead back to 10 to open the second quarter before West Chester battled back to cut the Lock Haven lead to 22-21 with 4:54 to play until halftime. The Bald Eagles continued to lead down the stretch of the first half, taking a 29-23 lead into the halftime break.
West Chester shot an improved 46.2 % (10-of-29) from the field in the second quarter to shoot 34.5 % (10-of-29) from the field for the half, while Lock Haven shot just 33.3 % (5-of-15) from the field to shoot 38.5 % (10-of-26) in the first half, including a 4-for-12 (33.3 %) effort from three-point range to hold a six-point lead at the midway point.
Daley led West Chester in scoring with 10 points, while Alana Robinson led Lock Haven in scoring with 10 points of her own, with four of those points coming at the free-throw line.
The third quarter remained a back-and-forth affair, but Lock Haven continued to maintain a single-digit lead, leading 39-32 with 4:28 to play in the third quarter. Papazoglou hit an important three-pointer late in the third quarter, which cut the deficit to 43-41 as West Chester trailed by just three (45-42) heading into the fourth. The Golden Rams shot an even 50.0 % (7-of-14) from the field in the third, including a 3-for-7 (42.9 %) from three-point range, while Lock Haven shot 46.7 % (7-of-15) in the quarter to maintain a slim lead.
West Chester quickly found itself back down by nine in the first two-and-a-half minutes of the fourth, prompting a quick timeout by the Golden Rams. Stein got West Chester back to within four with 5:15 to play when she hit a layup before Lock Haven restored a 57-49 lead with 3:33 to play. West Chester was never able to get the deficit back down to just a basket the remainder of the game as Lock Haven stretched its lead to 13 with under 50 seconds to play and earned a 65-53 victory over the Golden Rams.
Robinson led Lock Haven and all scorers with 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting, while Rhlyn Rhouse and Jenadia Jordan finished with 19 and 10, respectively. Robinson also led the team in rebounding with nine, including five on the defensive glass.
Lock Haven shot 63.6 % (7-of-11) from the field in the fourth to close out the victory and finished the game shooting 46.2 % (24-of-52) from the field, including a 4-for-14 (28.6 %) effort from beyond the arc, while also going 13-for-16 (81.3 %) at the line.
West Chester shot 37.9 % (22-of-58) from the field in the loss, including a 3-for-17 (17.6 %) effort from three-point range, while also going 6-for-9 (66.7 %) from the free throw line. West Chester shot just 33.3 % (5-for-15) from the field in the fourth as the comeback bid fell short.
Despite being outrebounded by a 39-26 margin, including a 12-10 lead on the offensive glass, West Chester finished the game with a 34-22 lead in points in the paint. West Chester also finished the game tied in points off turnovers with 15 each.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action next Wednesday night at Millersville, beginning at 5:30.
