Drexel & Towson Conclude Season in the First Round of the WNIT
Hunter Peters
RICHMOND, Va. (March 16, 2023) – CAA co-regular season champions Drexel and Towson saw their 2022-23 seasons come to a close in the first round of the WNIT on Thursday night.
Fordham 73, Drexel 63 | Box Score
Keishana Washington scored a career-high 43 points to set a program and Rose Hill Gym facility record in the first round of the WNIT, but it was not enough as Drexel fell to Fordham 73-63.
Fordham outscored Drexel 49-34 in the second half to improve to 19-12 this season and advance to face the winner of Columbia and Fairleigh Dickinson
in the second round of the WNIT. Drexel finishes the year 21-10 after making its ninth straight postseason appearance.
Washington’s 43 points are the eighth-highest single-game total in CAA Women’s Basketball history. She ends the season with 858 points, the second-most in a single season in league history. Additionally, the graduate guard finishes her career fourth all-time on the conference’s career scoring list with 2,363 points.
Anna DeWolfe led four Rams in double figures with 22 points, and Jada Dapaa tallied a double-double, recording 12 points with 13 rebounds for Fordham.
It was a slow start for both teams as Drexel and Fordham combined to shoot 24.1 percent (7-29) in the first quarter. Washington’s layup with 55 seconds remaining ended the first quarter with a 10-10 stalemate.
Fordham rallied off an 8-0 run to take an 18-14 lead with 6:22 left in the half; however, Drexel ended the half on a 12-2 run, including eight from Washington, taking a 29-24 lead into the break.
Drexel pushed its lead to 34-26 after five quick points two minutes into the third quarter. Fordham responded with an 11-0 run as the Rams got hot quickly and took a 37-34 lead just after the media timeout. Fordham shot 61.5 percent (8-13) in the quarter and held Drexel to 30.0 percent (3-10) shooting as the Rams outscored the Dragons 21-13 in the period and took a 45-42 lead into the fourth.
Chloe Hodges scored the opening basket of the fourth to pull Drexel within one, but Fordham never trailed in the quarter. Asia Dingle scored seven of her 16 points after the 3:12 mark in the fourth, helping the Rams gain a 65-57 lead with 40 seconds to go. Fordham iced the game with eight free throws in the final 30 seconds.
Harvard 103, Towson 63 | Box Score
Harvard overcame a slow start, shooting 63.2 percent (36-57) after the first quarter en route to a season-high 103 points to defeat Towson (103-63) in the first round of the WNIT.
Harvard improves to 18-11 this season and will face the winner of Massachusetts and UAlbany in the second round of the WNIT. Towson concludes the year 21-12 after earning a share of its first CAA regular season title in program history.
Harmoni Turner became the sixth player in Ivy League history to record a triple-double, leading Harvard with 21 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds. Lola Mullaney tallied a game-high 22 points as six players reached double figures for the Crimson.
Kylie Kornegay-Lucas and Mariah Wilson scored 13 points to pace Towson. It marks a career-high for Wilson.
Towson took control in the first quarter with an 11-0 run, gaining a 16-5 advantage with 2:34 remaining in the frame. The Crimson scored seven of the final nine points in the quarter, but Towson led 18-12 after the first.
Harvard caught fire in the second, exploding for 31 points on 66.7 percent (12-18) shooting. The Crimson went on a 9-1 run at the 8:21 mark to gain its first lead (25-23). Towson regained the lead before Harvard pulled even at 30 with 3:38 remaining in the half. Tied at 32, Harvard finished the second quarter on an 11-0 run to take a double-digit lead at the half.
Halftime didn’t cool down the Crimson. Harvard bettered its effort in the third, shooting 70.0 percent (14-20) from the floor, including 5-of-7 from three-point range and outscored Towson 35-12 in the quarter to run away with the game.
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