WASHINGTON, PA. – Trailing by as many as 12 during the second half, third-seeded William Paterson (16-12) used a late 21-6 run to upset overall No. 1 seed Washington & Jefferson (22-6), 81-80, March 2 in the quarterfinal round of the ECAC Women's Basketball Tournament.
The Pioneers advance to the ECAC Tournament semifinals Saturday, March 3, at 5:00 p.m. against Springfield at Washington & Jefferson College. W&J will also host the final Sunday, March 4, at 1:00 p.m.
Behind by a 44-34 count at halftime, a 58-46 score with 2:03 remaining in the third quarter and a 61-55 count at the end of the third, WP found itself trailing by seven (64-57) with 8:02 to play in the game. Junior guard Alisa Giordano drained a three-pointer and was fouled, making the free throw for a four-point play 10 seconds later (64-61, 7:52). Neither team could find the measure again until the 5:57 mark when junior forward Carolyn Hill started a mini 6-0 run of her own to hand the Pioneers a 67-64 edge with 4:51 left.
The two teams found themselves tied at 70-70 with 2:51 on the clock, but a Hill putback (72-70, 1:56), a jumper by junior guard Julie Rovito (74-70, 1:29) and a pair of 2-for-2 trips to the charity stripe by Hill at the 0:51 (76-70) and 0:36 (78-70) marks pushed it to a three-possession game.
The Presidents did not go quietly, making a three-pointer with eight seconds left for an 81-80 margin, then fouled six seconds later. William Paterson missed both free throws and W&J pulled down the rebound, but couldn't get a shot off before the final buzzer.
Rovito contributed 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists, while Hill scored a season-high 18 tallies, making all five of her field-goal attempts and eight of 10 (.800) free throws during 19 minutes off the bench. Junior guard Ashley Castillo posted 15 points, and senior forward Tori Woetzel had 10 tallies and seven boards. William Paterson shot 50.0 (25-50) percent from the field, including a 7-for-12 (.583) effort during the fourth quarter. Washington & Jefferson made just four of its 19 (.211) attempts during the final 10 minutes.
Freshman guard Lauren Gilbert led the Presidents with 19 points and senior guard Amirah Moore had 18.
For all of the latest information on the Pioneers, visit http://www.wpupioneers.com and http://www.wpupioneers.com/socialmedia.