NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- Freshman point guard Kylie McKennen (Triadelphia, W.Va./Wheeling Park) dished out a career-high 15 assists and sophomore forward Alie Seto (Allison, Pa./Brownsville) scored 26 points as W&J downed Westminster 80-68 in Presidents' Athletic Conference play.
 
After overcoming a five-point deficit in the second quarter, a late surge helped W&J take a 36-33 lead into halftime. Seto led a balanced offensive attack with 11 points at the halftime break. Another major catalyst for the offense was McKennen, who matched her career-high for assists in the first half alone, tallying eight helpers. 
 
An early 5-0 spurt by the Titans helped the hosts regain a slight 38-36 less than a minute into the third. However, the Presidents would respond in a big way, using a 19-2 run over the next 5:10 to take control of the contest. Sparking the run was Seto, who started the run with a three-point play to push W&J back in front at 39-38. 
 
Freshman guard Aleena McDaniel (Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown) then recorded six of the next 11 points for the Red and Black to swell the President lead into double figures (50-38) at the 6:11 mark. Parker then capped the run with a three-point basket to make the score 55-40 with 4:09 to play in the third. 
 
W&J closed out the quarter with back-to-back baskets from Seto and sophomore forward Maria Lawhorne(Pittsburgh, Pa./Plum) to take a 61-46 advantage after 30 minutes.
 
Early in the fourth, the Presidents stretched the lead to 20 points (71-51) at the 6:27 mark when Parker drained a triple on McKennen's 15th assist of the contest.  
 
Westminster refused to go quietly, answering with a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to cut the W&J lead back into single digits (73-64) with 2:32 to play. The Titans would get within eight points (76-68) before the Presidents closed out the game with four free throws down the stretch.
 
Seto put together a strong offensive showing, recording a game-best 26 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field and 8-of-9 makes from the free throw line. Seto chipped in seven rebounds and four steals to round out her stat line. 
 
Parker contributed 20 points, five rebounds and three steals, while Lawhorne finished with 11 points and five rebounds.  
 
McKennen filled the stat sheet, as the freshman finished with seven points, six rebounds and four steals to go along with her 15 assists. 
 
The 15 assists for McKennen were the second most in school history, trailing only a 16-assist performance by Ann Aigner against Hiram College, exactly 31 years ago back on Jan. 30, 1988. The 15 assists were the most by a PAC player in a single game since Devin Beasley recorded 18 on Jan. 18, 2014. 
 
Aside from the gaudy offensive performances, pressure defense was critical for W&J, as the visitors outscored the Titans by a 34-14 margin in points off of turnovers. 
 
The win improves W&J to 10-2 in PAC play and 14-6 overall. Meanwhile, the Titans dropped to 5-7 in the league and 7-14 overall. 
 
The Presidents host Thiel College at the Henry Memorial Center this Saturday, Feb. 2. The contest will tip-off at 1 p.m. inside the Henry Memorial Center. In conjunction with the PAC doubleheader against the Tomcats, W&J will host Community Day.