Presidents Top Bethany For Third-Straight Win
BETHANY, W. Va. – Junior forward Chelsea Apke (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mount Lebanon) posted 19 points and a career-high 16 rebounds to lift the Washington & Jefferson College women’s basketball team to its third consecutive victory by a score of 64-56 against host Bethany at Hummel Field House on Saturday afternoon.
Apke’s 16 rebounds were the most by a President since Maggie Gibson pulled down 22 boards against Thomas More on January 7, 2010. The double-double was her Presidents’ Athletic Conference-leading eighth of the season.
Bethany (5-10, 3-5) led by seven points during the opening half but a 9-0 spurt, aided by seven points from Apke, put W&J in front 19-17 at the 8:44 mark. The Presidents’ lead grew to five at halftime when Apke dribbled the length of the floor and sank a layup just before the buzzer sounded.
Sophomore guard Alexa DelGreco (Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton LaSalle) pushed the advantage to double figures with a three-pointer, but the Bison quickly cut the lead in half with buckets from Taylor Verrico and Cayla Garneau.
The Presidents made use of their trips to the free-throw line during a 14-7 run to once again pull away from Bethany. W&J connected on 8-of-9 attempts from the charity stripe and junior point guard Kara Seamon (Morgantown, W. Va./University) scored five points during the four-minute surge, helping Washington& Jefferson seal its third-straight win.
W&J produced another strong defensive effort, holding Bethany to 31 percent (20-63) shooting, the fourth-straight game it limited opponents to under 37 percent from the field. The Presidents held a 49-41 on the glass, while connecting on 35 percent (22-62) of their shots from the floor.
Sophomore center Valerie Dunlap (Hostetter, Pa./Latrobe) collected 13 points and eight rebounds, while senior guard Emily Abraham (Canfield, Ohio/Boardman) tallied 10 points. Seamon was perfect from the free-throw stripe (5-5) and added seven points, while the Bison were led by 12 points from Kayla Taormina and Verrico.
W&J returns to the Henry Memorial Center on Wednesday to face Geneva at 6:00 pm.
