Skip Ad

Women's Basketball

Generals Keep Dancing with Comeback Win Over Bethel in NCAA WBB Sectional

LEXINGTON, Va. --- In front of another sold out crowd inside Holekamp Gym, the third-ranked Washington and Lee University women's basketball team rallied back from an eight-point halftime deficit to defeat 23rd-ranked Bethel University (Minn.) 75-67 to move on to the NCAA Quarterfinals. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
  • Emily Erickson kicked off the scoring for Bethel (24-7) with a jumper 40 seconds into the opening quarter before W&L (31-0) went on a 7-0 run to take a five-point lead thanks to a layup from Sarah Zimmerman, a three-pointer from Elka Prechel, and a pair of foul shots from Zou Raine. The Royals battled back to take a 9-7 lead with seven unanswered points of their own, highlighted by a pair of buckets from Erickson as well as a triple from Macey Littlefield. After both teams traded the lead, Bethel took a 17-15 lead into the second frame as Alaina Bonacquista registered a pair of baskets on back-to-back possessions.
  • Mary Schleusner knotted the game at 17 early in the second with a jumper before the Royals scored eight unanswered points to take a 25-17 lead. The Blue and White trimmed the lead to one following a 7-0 scoring stretch with two baskets from S. Zimmerman, one from Schleusner, while Quinn McGuinness added a free throw. However, Bethel found themselves with a ten-point lead, their largest of the night, after going on a 10-1 run that spanned three minutes. Caroline Shimp got to the foul line with 33 seconds remaining in the half, knocking down both shots to send the Royals into the break with a 35-27 lead.
  • W&L kicked off the second half with a 7-2 run to cut the lead to three before Elly Schmitz buried a triple to extend Bethel's lead back to six. The Generals rattled off nine straight points to erupt Holekamp Gym and take a 43-40 lead thanks to buckets from Raine, Riley Bryant, as well as a Sam Collins three-pointer. Cally Peterson and Rosalie Penke scored on back-to-back possessions to kick-start an 8-2 run for the Royals that reclaimed the lead with 2:39 to play in the third. The Generals weren't phased as they rattled off seven consecutive points to take a 52-48 lead thanks to six points from Icy Keneah. Colette Duininck buried a triple with 30 seconds to go to make it a 52-51 game heading into the final quarter of play.
  • A 6-2 run from the Royals opened the fourth as they took a 57-54 lead before a Schleusner tip-in layup kick-started a 9-0 scoring stretch to take a six-point lead. Prechel also knocked down another three-pointer during the run, with Keneah adding a bucketin the paint. Both teams traded baskets throughout the quarter before Prechel buried her third three-pointer of the game to give the Generals a 72-65 lead. Keneah iced the game  as she knocked down a free throw with 13 seconds remaining to send the Blue and White home with an eight-point win.
TOP PERFORMERS
  • Mary Schleusner led all scorers with 20 points while grabbing 17 boards. She added three assists, two steals, and a block in the win. Icy Keneah also reached double digits, adding 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the floor while registering a steal. Sarah Zimmerman added eight points while dishing out a game-high six assists with four steals. Elka Prechel knocked down three triples in the win while Sam Collins added two and Quinn McGuinness tallied one.
  • Emily Erickson led the Royals with 13 points while adding a team-high three blocks with two assists. Peterson added three blocks alongside Erickson. Alli Born and Cally Peterson both reached double figures, adding 10 points. Colette Duininck posted a team-high four assists while Born and Rosalie Penke each added three.
TEAM STATS
  • The Generals punched their ticket to the NCAA Quarterfinals for the second time in three seasons while moving to 31-0 on the season.
  • The Blue and White shot 37.0 percent (27-of-73) from the floor while shooting over 40 percent in the third (45.5%) and fourth quarters (47.4%). They knocked down six of their 19 shots from beyond the arc while shooting 15-of-23 at the free-throw line.
  • W&L dominated on the glass at 50-36 overall while grabbing 23 offensive boards compared to the Royals' 11. The Blue and White scored 38 points in the paint while adding 18 points off Bethel's 13 turnovers. The bench provided 28 points while scoring 22 second-chance points.
UP NEXT
  • The third-ranked W&L will take on eighth-ranked Denison University in the NCAA Quarterfinals with hopes of punching their ticket to Salem, Va. for the NCAA Semifinals. The Generals and Big Red will square off at 8 p.m. inside Holekamp Gym. You can get tickets for tomorrow's game on HomeTown Ticketing or watch on NCAA.com or follow live stats here.