NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - The Westminster College women's basketball team picked up its first win of the season with a 57-48 victory over La Roche on Saturday afternoon in non-conference action at the Buzz Ridl Gymnasium.
The Titans improve to 1-3 on the season while La Roche, which previously defeated Presidents' Athletic Conference teams Thiel and Geneva, drops to 2-2 on the season.
Senior Amy Dolsak (McDonald, Ohio/McDonald) bucketed a game- and season-high 20 points to lead Westminster. Dolsak also tied freshman Katie Hughes (Boardman, Ohio/Cardinal Mooney) with a team-high eight rebounds.
Dolsak shot 8-13 from the floor, including 3-6 from 3-point range.
Sophomore forward Emily Dolsak (McDonald, Ohio/McDonald) was the Titans' other double-figure scorer with 10 points to go with five rebounds.
Junior point guard Kaitlin McCarthy (Lowellville, Ohio/Lowellville) scored nine points while handing out a game-high four assists, all in the second half.
Chloe' Stewart led the Redhawks with 16 points, followed by Cheronda Ransaw with 10.
The Titans shot 41.7 percent (20-48) from the floor while limiting the Redhawks to 30.9 percent shooting (21-68) including just 13 percent (3-23) from 3-point range.
Westminster held a considerable 49-31 rebound advantage, while La Roche held a stark turnover advantage, committing just nine to Westminster's 21.
La Roche led 10-5 early before Westminster went on a 17-0 run covering nine minutes until the Redhawks scored again with six minutes left in the first half.
After a nine-point, 32-23 lead at halftime, Westminster went up by as many as 18 points on two occasions - at the 9:57 and 8:51 marks of the second half - before La Roche whittled the Titans' lead down to seven points at 53-46 with 2:04 remaining.
Westminster is now 8-0 all-time vs. La Roche.
The Titans host Penn State-Beaver on Monday at 6 p.m.
About Westminster College...
Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College is a top tier liberal arts college and a national leader in graduation rate performance, according to U.S. News Guide to America's Best Colleges. Westminster ranked third among liberal arts colleges in social mobility, according to the Washington Monthly College Guide, and is one of the most affordable national liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 371 Colleges" and "Best in the Northeast" by The Princeton Review, and is named to the President's Honor Roll for excellence in service learning.
Nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa., campus. Visit www.westminster.edu/advantage to view "Advantage: Westminster" A Strategic Plan 2010-2020.
