LATROBE, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - Washington & Jefferson College used a dominant second half to pull away from Saint Vincent College for a 64-43 victory Saturday afternoon in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Championship at the Robert S. Carey Center.
With the win, W&J improved to 22-6 overall, while Saint Vincent closed its season at 21-7. A crowd of 973 was on hand for the title matchup.
The victory gives the Presidents their second consecutive PAC championship and eighth in program history. It's the fourth PAC crown for W&J under head coach Jina DeRubbo.
The championship contest featured six ties and six lead changes in a tightly contested first half. Saint Vincent carried a narrow 29-28 advantage into the break after shooting 47.8 percent (11-of-23) over the opening two quarters.
W&J seized control in the third quarter, holding the Bearcats to just seven points on 3-of-13 shooting. The Presidents turned a one-point halftime deficit into a 42-36 lead heading to the fourth quarter and never looked back.
W&J put the game away with a decisive final period, shooting 70 percent (7-of-10) from the field and 75 percent (3-of-4) from three-point range in the fourth. The Presidents outscored Saint Vincent 22-7 over the final 10 minutes to secure the conference crown.
Junior forward Katie Kovalchick led all scorers with 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including a perfect 3-for-3 effort from beyond the arc and 5-for-5 at the free throw line. Senior guard Stellanie Loutsion added 17 points, while graduate student guard Riley DeRubbo chipped in 14 points with three three-pointers. Junior guard Marina Grado contributed 10 points and three assists.
As a team, the Presidents shot 44.4 percent from the floor (20-of-45), 57.1 percent from three-point range (8-of-14) and 88.9 percent from the free throw line (16-of-18). W&J also forced 13 turnovers and converted them into 15 points.
Following the game, Loutsion was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament, while DeRubbo and Kovalchick were All-Tournament team selections.
Senior forward Makenna Maier paced Saint Vincent with 20 points, including four three-pointers. Sophomore guard Brooke Evans added eight points and seven rebounds, while sophomore forward Emerson Peffer recorded six points and eight boards off the bench.
The Bearcats shot 34.0 percent (16-of-47) from the field and were limited to 18.2 percent shooting in the fourth quarter.
Representing SVC on the All-Tournament Team was Maier and junior guard Olivia Yancy.
Washington & Jefferson earns the PAC’s automatic bid to the 2026 NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Championship. The entire bracket will be announced on the NCAA's selection show on its website Monday at 2:30 p.m.