W&J women fall to defending champions
College Basketball
Molly Dorighi and Abby Cooch each scored 19 points, powering defending NCAA Division III national champion and top-ranked Denison to a 75-54 victory over Washington & Jefferson in a non-conference women’s basketball game Wednesday night at Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
Dorighi and Cooch combined for four of Denison’s 10 three-point field goals. The Big Red, who return all five starters from the national championship team, held W&J (2-1) to 7-for-29 shooting in the first half, when Denison forged a 37-19 lead.
Ada Taute’s 11 points and Hannah Grudzien’s 10 gave Denison (2-0) four players in double figures.
Jaden Wan was tops for W&J with 11 points. Katie Kovalchick had a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds. Jacey Mullen also netted 10 points.
Kovalchick has a double-double in every game this season.
W&J continues its tough early-season schedule when it plays Wednesday at 25th-ranked Carnegie Mellon. The Tartans are coached by former Trinity High School head coach Kathy McConnell-Miller.
Waynesburg 89
Pitt-Greensburg 40
Alaina Holtz led a balanced Waynesburg attack with 14 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and the Yellow Jackets picked up their first win of the season, an 89-40 thumping of host Pitt-Greensburg on Wednesday.
Waynesburg (1-1) led 17-11 after one quarter and then took firm control of the game over the next 10 minutes, outscoring Pitt-Greensburg (0-3) by a 23-6 margin to take a commanding 40-17 lead into halftime.
The Yellow Jackets had 12 different players enter the scoring column and no Waynesburg player logged more than 20 minutes of playing time in the game. Kara McFadden finished with 12 points and Bella Coleman scored 11 points in only nine minutes.
Pitt-Greensburg, which was coming off a 103-26 loss to Division II IUP on Monday in an exhibition game, shot only 26 percent. Tiana Moracco and Jocelyn Bielak each scored 14 points for Pitt-Greensburg.