(CRESTVIEW HILLS, Ky.) - The No. 7-ranked and top-seeded Thomas More College women's basketball team defeated fourth-seeded Waynesburg University, 75-57, tonight (Friday, February 22, 2013) in the semifinals of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Championship Tournament at the Connor Convocation Center in Crestview Hills, Kentucky.
With the win, the Saints improve to 26-1 and advance to the PAC Tournament Championship game tomorrow at 4 p.m. at the Connor Convocation Center where they will play third-seeded Washington & Jefferson College. Washington & Jefferson was a 76-70 winner over second-seeded Saint Vincent College in the other semifinal match tonight. It will be the Saints' eighth-straight appearance in the PAC championship game and they will be going for their seventh-straight title. With the loss, the Yellow Jackets fall to 14-13.
Thomas More jumped out to a 12-5 lead when senior guard Katie Kitchen (Alexandria, Ky./Campbell County) made a three-pointer with 16:10 to play in the first half. Waynesburg answered with an 11-6 run to cut the lead to 18-16 with 11:44 to play in the first half when Jessi Drayer made two free-throws. The Saints responded with a 15-4 run to extend the lead to 33-20 when freshman forward Alexa Santamaria (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) made two free-throws with 2:22 to play in the opening half. The Yellow Jackets closed the half on a 4-2 run to cut the lead to 35-24 at halftime when Brittany Spencer made a jumper with eight-seconds to play in the half.
The Saints opened the second half on a 14-2 run to increase the lead to 49-26 with 14-10 to play in the game when senior guard Allison Long (Hebron, Ky./Conner) converted an old fashion three-point play. Waynesburg used a 14-2 run to cut the lead to 51-40 on a Paige Pearce jumper with 10:16 to play in the game. That would be as close as Waynesburg would come as Thomas More would extend the lead to as many as 22 points as it closed out the game on a 24-17 run for the 75-57 victory.
Long led all scorers with 25 points, while sophomore forward Jenny Burgoyne (Cincinnati, Ohio/McAuley) and Kitchen joined her in double-figure scoring with 14 and 12 points respective. Burgoyne completed a double-double as she led the team on the boards with 10 rebounds. Kitchen led the team in steals with four, while junior guard Devin Beasley (Burlington, Ky./Conner) and sophomore guard Sydni Wainscott (Erlanger, Ky./Simon Kenton) led the team in assists with four each.