WASHINGTON, Pa. – A stellar defensive effort led the Washington & Jefferson College women's basketball team to a 56-43 wire-to-wire win over visiting Geneva in Presidents' Athletic Conference action at the Henry Memorial Center.  

The win was the 11th straight for the Presidents, who improve to 13-5 overall and 9-1 in conference play. The GT's fall to 2-15 overall and 0-10 in league games. The 11-game winning streak is the longest since the Presidents also recorded 11 straight wins during the 2009-10 season.

Defensively, W&J limited Geneva to just 14 made field goals on 57 attempts, a conversion rate of just 24.6 percent. The Golden Tornadoes connected on just 19 percent from behind the three-point line and committed 19 turnovers in the loss.

W&J jumped out to an early 6-0 lead over Geneva after back-to-back three-point baskets by senior forward Danielle Parker (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) and sophomore forward Alie Seto (Allison, Pa./Brownsville).

After Geneva rallied back with eight of the next 10 points to tie the game at 8-8, the Presidents scored 11 unanswered points over the final 5:18 of the opening quarter. Sophomore forward Maria Lawhorne (Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) scored four points and freshman guard Carlee Stelter (Wampum, Pa./Mohawk) drained a three-pointer to finish the first quarter scoring.

A three-point basket by Parker pushed the W&J lead to 22-8 at the 6:30 mark of the second quarter. A 13-5 run by Geneva helped the visitors close the deficit to 26-21 at halftime.
Parker led W&J with 10 points at the break, while Seto chipped in five points and seven rebounds over the first 20 minutes of play.

The Presidents used a strong start to the third quarter to extend the advantage back into double figures. Seven straight points, which included a basket apiece from Parker, Seto and sophomore guard Hannah Johnston (East Freedom, Pa./Central) made it 33-21 with 7:59 to play in the third.

A little later, three straight three-pointers by W&J, including two from freshman guard Tori Boalton (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown Area) stretched the lead to 21 points (44-23) at the 3:04 mark. The Presidents maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest en route to the victory.

Parker finished with a team-best 14 points while also adding six rebounds, two assists and two steals in 25 minutes of action. Seto tallied 12 points, a game-high eight rebounds and three steals. Lawhorne made strong contributions off of the bench, registering eight points and seven rebounds. Stelter recorded six points, three assists and three steals, while Boalton contributed six points.

As a team, the Presidents held several statistical advantage in the contest, including bench points (24-7), assists (16-5) and steals (14-10).

W&J hosts Chatham University on Saturday, Jan. 26. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. inside the Henry Memorial Center.