Kirkpatrick Leads W&J In Rout Of Geneva
WASHINGTON, Pa. - Senior Ashley Kirkpatrick (Sharon, Pa./Kennedy Catholic) was a perfect 9-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from the free throw line as Washington & Jefferson College cruised past Geneva 69-44 on Wednesday night at the Henry Memorial Center.
Kirkpatrick was the game’s high-scorer with 22 points. She also grabbed nine rebounds and handed out three assists as the Presidents (12-12, 7-10) won their second-straight game.
W&J raced out to an early 6-0 lead before Beth DeLuca brought the Golden Tornadoes (3-21, 2-15) back. DeLuca drained a pair of long three-pointers and four free throws, as the game was tied at 10.
Senior Blair Cotton (Pittsburgh, Pa./Oakland Catholic) responded by nailing a triple and Kirkpatrick and freshman Alexa DelGreco (Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton LaSalle) followed with baskets, helping the Presidents build a seven-point lead, an advantage they would never relinquish.
With W&J leading 51-36 midway through the second half, junior Emily Abraham (Canfield, Ohio/Boardman) knocked down a triple, starting a14-0 surge that would give the Presidents their biggest lead at 29.
Cotton tallied nine points, two assists and two rebounds, while DelGreco added six points, five assists and four steals.
Sophomore Alexa Burzese (Sewickley, Pa./Quaker Valley) contributed eight points off the bench and freshman Valerie Dunlap (Hostetter, Pa./Latrobe) grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds.
DeLuca paced the Golden Tornadoes with 20 points, while Rachel Rouan produced a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Geneva shot just 31.3 percent (15-48) from the field and committed 24 turnovers, compared to 43.8 (28-64) percent and 10 giveaways by the Presidents.
W&J will close out the regular season at PAC rival Waynesburg on Saturday at 1:30 pm.
