BETHANY, W.Va. – The Bethany College women's basketball team battled the Washington & Jefferson College Presidents in a Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) matchup inside Hummel Field House, Wednesday evening. The Bison fell short of the comeback, 54-51.

GAME FLOW

• Bella Skobel put the Bison on the board first off a pair of free throws. W&J quickly responded to knot the game and take the lead on back-to-back possessions. Ashleigh Wheeler tied the game at 4-4 with a layup. The Presidents again took the lead and extended it to 10-4 before the Bison scored again. W&J led 14-11 after the first stanza.
• The Presidents outscored the Bison, 12-9 to take a 26-20 lead at the half.
• In the third quarter, the Bison and Presidents battled back and forth, with the Bison cutting the deficit, 28-27 after Makenzee Mason hit a shot from behind the arc at the 6:30 mark. Moments later, Mason hit a jumper to deadlock the game at 29-29. The Presidents regained the lead and maintained the slim 40-34 lead heading into the final quarter of play.
• It was a back and forth affair to open the fourth quarter with each opponent answering each other's baskets. With 5:35 left in the game, Makenzee Mason hit another shot from behind the arc, cutting the lead Presidents' to one, 44-43. The Presidents held a 50-43 lead with just under three minutes to go. The Bison wouldn't back down. Alyssa Serensky hit a three with 1:50 to go as the Bison trailed 52-46. The Bison would sent the Presidents to the foul line to stop the clock. The Presidents would go 2-4 from the line allowing the Bison to hang in. After a timeout, Makenzee Mason hit a three bringing the Bison within five with 14 seconds left. Ashleigh Wheeler would force the steal and dish it to Bella Skobel for the layup, trailing 54-51 with five seconds to go. The clock would expire as the Bison attempted a steal.

IN THE BOX SCORE

• Makenzee Mason led the Bison with 17 points, shooting 4-for-8 from behind the arc.
• Ashleigh Wheeler had 12 points with seven rebounds and three assists.
• Bella Skobel added 10 points.
• Sophie Morey had a team-high four blocks.
• Meghan Dryburgh led the Presidents with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Sarah Beradelli added 11 points and 16 rebounds.

BY THE NUMBERS

• W&J edged Bethany in shooting percentage, shooting 38.3% (23-60) from the field. Bethany shot 30.9% (17-55).
• The Bison made eight three-pointers shooting 8-for-27 from behind the arc.
• The Presidents edged the Bison on the boards, 39-33.

RECORDS

Bethany College – 4-12 (4-7 PAC)

Washington & Jefferson College – 14-1 (10-0 PAC)

UP NEXT

Bethany returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 18 when they travel north to Meadville, Pa. for a PAC matchup against Allegheny College for a 6:30 pm tipoff.