WASHINGTON, Pa. -- Meghan Dryburgh (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) scored a game-high 22 points and added 10 rebounds as the Washington & Jefferson women's basketball team pulled away in the second half for a 65-53 win over visiting Grove City Saturday afternoon in a Presidents' Athletic Conference game at Salvitti Family Gymnasium.
The win improves W&J to 23-2 overall and 19-1 in PAC play. The loss drops Grove City to 15-5 in the conference and 15-10 overall.
Dryburgh scored 20 of her 22 points in the second half. The double-double effort was the PAC-leading 15th of the season for Dryburgh.
Adalynn Cherry (Altoona, Pa./Altoona) recorded 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field and added five assists. Sarah Berardelli (Ambridge, Pa./North Catholic) was a presence inside, as the junior finished with a game-high 14 rebounds to go along with eight points and six assists. Stellanie Loutsion (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) added nine points off of the bench.
W&J converted 45.8 percent of its field goal attempts (27-of-59) and six of 11 three-point (54.5 percent) shots. Grove City struggled at times from the field, as the Wolverines made just 29.6 percent. The Wolverines made just 3-of-25 attempts (12 percent) from distance. The Wolverines did not have a player score in double figures. Grove City's top scorer, Megan Kallock, was limited to five points on one made field goal in 15 attempts.
The Presidents and Wolverines were tied at 13-13 after the first quarter of play. W&J led by as many as five points in the second quarter but settled for a narrow 26-25 advantage at halftime. W&J took control in the third quarter as Dryburgh took over. W&J opened the third with nine consecutive points, seven of which came from Dryburgh. Her triple at the 7:45 mark swelled the lead to double digits at 35-25. A jumper by Cherry in the lane stretched the W&J advantage to 41-29 just minutes later. W&J led 48-38 as things headed to the fourth quarter.
W&J ripped off another sizable run to start the fourth quarter. The Red and Black scored the first seven points of the fourth to stretch the lead to 17 points. Dryburgh scored buckets on W&J's first two possessions of the quarter. After a Grove City turnover, Loutsion converted an old-fashioned three-point play to extend the lead to 55-38 at the 9:03 mark. W&J maintained a lead of at least eight points the rest of the way.
The Presidents honored Victoria Koeck (Sidman, Pa./Forest Hills) and Maddi Gutierrez (Bridgeville, Pa./South Fayette) prior to the game on Senior Day for their contributions to the program. Also recognized before the game was head coach Jina DeRubbo, who claimed her 500th career victory last Saturday against Waynesburg.
W&J enters the PAC Tournament as the top seed. The Presidents have earned home court advantage and will host eighth-seeded Geneva on Monday, Feb. 20. Tip off at Salvitti Family Gymnasium is scheduled for 7 p.m.