Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Strong start propels West Chester East girls
In first round action of the PIAA 5A Girls Basketball Tournament, West Chester East topped Freire Charter 57-30. It was the first victory state victory in program history.
The Vikings raced out to a 19-6 first quarter and 2814 halftime lead. Annalise Kubasko led a balanced attack with 11 points, while teammates Annie Kerns and Sofia Keith each added 10 points for East.
College Women’s Basketball GANNON 79, WEST CHESTER 73 >>
Playing in its third PSAC Semifinal since 2018, the Golden Rams (24-6) entered their semifinal against the top seed from the PSAC West in No. 4/3 Gannon (31-2). One of the hottest teams in Division II women’s basketball as winners of its last 16 in a row, West Chester gave Gannon everything it could handle, but the Golden Knights used an 18-7 run late in the fourth to earn a win over the upset-minded Golden Rams.
West Chester led for much of the game and never trailed by more than four until the late stages of the contest. Still, PSAC West Player of the Year Sam Pirosko turned in a career-high 40 points and 19 rebounds to lift the Golden Knights to their fourth consecutive PSAC Championship game appearance dating back to the 2020 season. Tomorrow afternoon, Gannon will face the Lock Haven/California (Pa.) winner in search of its third PSAC Championship in the last four seasons.
Emily McAteer led West Chester in scoring with 23 points on 7-of-15 shooting while also going 8-for-8 at the line as the first of four Golden Rams in double figures. Leah Johnson finished with 21 points of her own, while Mia Kozicki and Morgan Warley finished with 15 and 11 each. Kozicki also led the way in rebounding, posting a team-best 10 rebounds in the setback. Johnson also finished with eight rebounds and a team-high four assists.
West Chester finished the game shooting 41.3 % (29-of63) from the field, including a 3-for-17 (17.6 %) from threepoint range, while also shooting 78.3 % (18-of-23) from the line in the setback.
Gannon scored the first four points of the game, but the Golden Rams countered with a 6-0 run to take a quick 6-4 lead over the Golden Knights in the early going. The Golden Rams and Golden Knights continued trading runs as the first quarter continued, and Gannon held a slim 14-12 lead with 3:19 to play in the first quarter.
McAteer was a big part of the Golden Rams first quarter, scoring 10 of the first 12 points for the Golden Rams to help West Chester stay within striking distance of the fourth-ranked Golden Knights.
Thanks to six late points from Johnson, West Chester scored eight of the final 10 points of the first quarter to carry a 20-16 lead into the second.
West Chester and Gannon traded makes early in the first quarter, but the Golden Rams eventually snuck out to a 29-23 lead with six minutes to play in the second, which was its largest of the afternoon to that point. The upset-minded Golden Rams stretched their lead to 31-23, but Gannon countered with a quick 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 31-30 with two minutes to play in the first half.
After a defensive stop, PSAC West player of the year Pirosko nearly gave West Chester the lead with a tight turnaround layup in the lane, but Kozicki stood her up and sent the play back the other way. The two teams traded a pair of stops each way, but Pirosko eventually extended the run to 9-0 to claim a 32-31 lead with under a minute to play in the first half. After being held without a made field goal for the final five minutes of the half, West Chester took the lead into the halftime break after a perfect 2-for-2 trip to the line by McAteer.
West Chester shot north of 50.0 % from the field for much of the first half and ended the first 20 minutes shooting 43.3 % (13-of-30) from the field, including a 0-for-6 effort from threepoint range, while also going 7-for-9 at the line through the opening 20 minutes.
McAteer led West Chester in scoring in the first half with 12 points on 4-of-5 from the field while also going 4-for-4 from the line. Johnson was the other Golden Ram in double figures at the end of the first 20 minutes, scoring 10 points, while Kozicki was already flirting with a double-double, scoring nine points to go along with seven rebounds.