NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - The Westminster College women's basketball team had the 20th-ranked team in country tied at halftime on Thursday night, but visiting Washington & Jefferson escaped with a 64-56 win in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game.
The game was originally scheduled for Wednesday, but the game was postponed because of inclement weather that affected travel.
Westminster is now 8-14 on the season and 6-6 in the PAC, while W&J, ranked No. 20 in the WBCA/USA Today/ESPN Division III Coaches' Poll, improves to 19-3 overall and 9-2 in the league.
Freshman guard Jenn Cantella (Freedom, Pa./Freedom) scored a career-high 17 points for Westminster on 6-12 shooting from the field and 5-9 shooting from 3-point range. Senior guard Amy Dolsak (McDonald, Ohio/McDonald) also registered 15 points and junior guard Kaitlin McCarthy (Lowellville, Ohio/Lowellville) bucketed 12 points for Westminster.
Sophomore forward Emily Dolsak (McDonald, Ohio/McDonald) led the Titans with three assists to go with eight rebounds and two points, while freshman forward Sam Higgins (McMurray, Pa./Peters Township) pulled down a game-high nine rebounds to go with six points.
Alyssa Oursler led W&J with 19 points, while Kennan Killeen scored 18.
W&J shot 40.7 percent (22-54) from the field and Westminster shot 36.5 percent (23-63) from the floor including a sizzling 45 percent (9-20) from 3-point range.
The Presidents led nearly the entire first half, but Westminster tied the game at 28-28 at halftime following a Cantella 3-pointer. Cantella had 11 of her career-high 17 points in the first half.
W&J slowly extended its lead in the second half, including a 10-point, 56-46 gap with 5:22 remaining. The Titans could only cut that deficit to seven points.
Westminster travels to Thiel on Saturday for a 1 p.m. tip-off.
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.
