Women's Basketball

West Chester's season comes to a close after NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Atlantic Regional Championship Game

The Golden Rams finish the 2022-23 season as NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional runner-up.

NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Atlantic Regional Tournament Central

Tournament Schedule:
 
                NCAA DII Atlantic Regional Tournament - Round One - Friday, March 10                                           
Noon Game 1 - #3 West Chester vs. #6 California U (PA) West Chester wins, 80-67
2:30 p.m. Game 2 - #2 Gannon vs. #7 Charleston  Charleston wins, 69-65
5 p.m. Game 3 - #1 Glenville State  vs. #8 Elizabeth City  Glenville State wins, 84-60 
7:30 p.m. Game 4 - #4 Shippensburg vs. #5 West Virginia State  Shippensburg wins, 87-83
 
                NCAA DII Atlantic Regional Tournament Semifinals - Saturday, March 11
5 p.m. Game 5 - #3 West Chester vs. #7 Charleston West Chester wins, 73-60
7:30 p.m Game 6 - #1 Glenville State vs. #4 Shippensburg  Glenville State wins, 107-76 
 
                NCAA DII Atlantic Regional Tournament Championship - Round Three - Monday, March 13
7 p.m. Game 7 - #1 Glenville State vs. #3 West Chester  Glenville State wins, 88-63 
 
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
  • Glenville State defeats West Chester, 88-63
West Chester battled defending national champion Glenville State tough early in the first quarter--even taking a lead midway through the period, 13-10--but Glenville's offensive pressure and timely three point shooting carried the Pioneers back in front for good. West Chester's Leah Johnson continued her great play in the Atlantic Regional, scoring a game-high 26 points and adding five assists to lead the Golden Rams' offense. Emily McAteer added a double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) while Michelle Kozicki contributed with eight points and six rebounds. 
 
SECOND ROUND
  • West Chester defeats University of Charleston, 73-60
West Chester used a balanced scoring attack, with four players in double figures, to defeat the University of Charleston, 73-60. Forward Anna McTamney led the way with 20 points and 11 rebounds, both of which were game-high totals. Emily McAteer (11 points, seven rebounds), Michelle Kozicki (15 points, 10 rebounds), and Leah Johnson (13 points, six assists) also were critical to the Golden Rams' victory. WCU held Charleston to just a 32% field goal percentage and shot 44 percent from the floor and 92 percent from the free throw line as a team. The Golden Rams, seeded third in the 2023 Atlantic Regional, advance to Monday night's Championship game against No. 1 seed and defending National Champion Glenville State.
  • Glenville State defeats Shippensburg, 107-76
Glenville State launched 39 three-point attempts--hitting 15 of them--and shot 50 percent from the floor in Saturday's 107-76 win over Shippensburg. With Shippensburg's Ariel Jones dealing with foul trouble, Lauren Pettis led the Raiders with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Jones ended the contest with 15 points, while Taja Colbert added 12 to Shippensburg's effort. Glenville State countered with Mickayla Perdue, who poured in 30 points and seven three-pointers to pace the Pioneers.
 

FIRST ROUND
  • West Chester defeats California (Pa.), 80-67
West Chester's Leah Johnson came alive to the tune of a career-high 44 points on 17-of-28 shooting from the floor to lead the Golden Rams to victory, avenging last weekend's 62-59 loss to California (Pa.) in the PSAC Tournament semifinals. Johnson added seven rebounds and three assists to her scoreline, with teammates Emily McAteer (15 points, 11 rebounds) and Anna McTamney (10 points, six rebounds) also pitching in with double-digit scoring. WCU opened up a 15-point lead in the first quarter, 22-7, until the Vulcans made a heroic comeback effort. Cal cut the lead to just a point at the end of the third quarter, 51-50, but Johnson and the Golden Rams pulled away in the fourth quarter. Cal's Ciaira Loyd led her team with 20 points and six assists, with Rajah Fink adding 18 points and eight rebounds.
    
  • Charleston defeats Gannon, 69-65
Despite solid offensive efforts by Gannon's Sam Pirosko (23 points) and freshman Bri Claxon (17 points), the No. 2-seeded Golden Knights were upset by No. 7 seed Charleston and the Golden Eagles' top scorer Markyia McCormick (a game-high 27 points, three rebounds, and four assists.) Gannon sprinted out to a 16-4 lead in the first quarter but Charleston fought back, climbing to within seven points, 39-32, after a layup by Clarrissa Francis with one second remaining in the half. Charleston had an efficient third quarter and led by as many as 13 points, 47-34, with 7:52 left to go in the third. Gannon's offense came alive in the fourth and the Golden Knights clawed back to tie the game at 65, but a late McCormick layup and solid defensive possession was enough for Charleston to escape with the victory.
 
  • Shippensburg defeats West Virginia State, 87-83
Shippensburg held West Virginia State to just 26% shooting in the first half of action, as the Raiders held a 40-38 advantage at the break despite star Ariel Jones only contributing five points. Jones came alive in the second half and finished the game with a game-high 25 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and three steals. A trio of other Raiders scored in double figures--Erin Gibbons (15 points), Treasure George (13 points, four assists, two steals), and Abbie Miller (12 points, six rebounds.) Shippensburg opened up a 12-point lead with five minutes to go in the game and held off a hard-charging WVSU team for the victory.
 

PREVIEW

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Four PSAC women's basketball teams--Gannon, West Chester, Shippensburg, and 2023 PSAC Women's Basketball Champion California (Pa.)--will participate in the 2023 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Tournament, the NCAA announced Sunday. The Atlantic Regional begins March 10 and will be hosted by top seed and 2023 MEC champion Glenville State.

Gannon (29-4) earned the No. 2 seed in this year's Atlantic Region tournament. The Golden Knights were the PSAC West regular season champions and fell to California (Pa.) in the 2023 PSAC Championship game. The Knights feature PSAC Western Division Athlete of the Year Sam Pirosko and will face Charleston (WV) (23-8 overall) in the first round.

West Chester (22-8) was named the No. 3 seed and returns to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018. They will face a familiar foe in No. 6 seed California (Pa.) (21-10), the 2023 PSAC Champion, which defeated the Golden Rams in last Saturday's semifinal, 62-59. The Vulcans made a terrific run through the 2023 PSAC Women's Basketball Tournament to win the program's seventh overall conference championship and first since 2015-16, capping off the weekend with a 75-63 win over Gannon in the title game. Cal sophomore Allycia Smith was named PSAC Tournament Most Valuable Player after scoring 19 points and hauling in 20 rebounds in Sunday's championship game.

Shippensburg (24-6) rounds out the Atlantic Regional bracket as the No. 4 seed and battles West Virginia State (22-6) in the first round. Shippensburg will look to Eastern Division Athlete of the Year Ariel Jones to lead them through the bracket. Jones was the PSAC's leading scorer and averages 25.2 points per game, almost a full five points more than second place, Gannon's Pirosko at 20.3 per game.
 
In the fourth matchup at the Atlantic Regional, No. 1 seed Glenville State (29-2) faces No. 8 seed Elizabeth City State.

The full bracket can be found here.