TAKOMA PARK, MD (December 9, 2010) – The Kutztown University women's basketball team fired on all cylinders as it defeated Washington Adventist 85-39 Thursday evening in a non-conference game. (BOXSCORE)
The Golden Bears (5-2 overall) achieved their first road win of the season and did so in style. KU shot 58.6 percent from the field off 34-for-58 shooting including 60% from 3-point range. After opening to a 29-point halftime lead, the Golden Bears were able to hold the Lady Shock of Washington Adventist to 15.2% shooting in the second half. Kutztown was also impressive at the foul line, shooting 9-for-11.
Leading Kutztown was its senior forward Melissa McQuade (Pittsburgh, PA/Shaler). McQuade played a crucial role in helping the Golden Bears get out to an early lead by scoring 11 points in the first half. She ended with 17 points off 7-for-9 shooting and went 3-for-3 at the charity stripe. McQuade also added six rebounds and four assists. She now improves her career point total to 1,275, and her career rebounding total to 778.
Continuing to make an impact off the bench is freshman Andrea Sisson (Richmond, VA/Godwin). Sisson tied her career-high of 14 points Thursday night and had an impressive second half as she went a perfect 3-for-3 from 3-point range. Sisson's play hasn't gone unnoticed by head women's basketball coach Janet Malouf as Sisson has seen her playing time continually increase.
“It's been getting easier for me throughout the year finding my shot and finding my place on the team,” said Sisson, “but I couldn't do it without my teammates. This game really helped our confidence and I feel it will carry us through the next couple games. We are a real good team and we are really playing well together right now.”
Also scoring in double-digits were Ashley Wood (Limerick, PA/Spring-Ford) and Avery Hodgson (Surf City, NJ/Southern Regional). Wood and Hodgson each had 10 points off 4-of-6 shooting. Wood added three steals and Hodgson recorded seven rebounds for KU. Hodgson set career highs in both categories. Steph Zewe (Lewistown, PA/Indian Valley) also contributed in the paint as she shot 4-for-5 and had nine points.
In a game that presented Malouf with an excellent opportunity to go into her bench, many players took advantage of their extended playing time.
Sharele Anderson (Clayton, NJ/Clayton) tied her career-high with eight points, and grabbed a career and game-high nine rebounds in just 13 minutes. Jackie Burg (West Chester, PA/Bishop Shanahan) had a career-high four points. 12 of Kutztown's 13 players scored against WAU.
“It was important for us to get a road win heading into the break,” said Malouf. “We had some good production out of a couple young kids, which is helpful. Andrea shot the ball very well for us. Everyone contributed to this game today and I'm glad we were able to get everybody some minutes.”
Kutztown truly had an impressive performance Thursday as it was able to dominate on both ends of the floor. KU outrebounded WAU 49-33 and snatched nine steals, eight of which coming in the first half. Their strong defensive play allowed Kutztown to turn WAU's 18 turnovers into 33 points.
KU will take the next couple weeks off to focus on finals and enjoy the holiday break. The Golden Bears return to action December 30th as they host Philadelphia University in their final non-conference game of the season. Kutztown will then head into 2011 and travel west to battle Mercyhurst.
“We're looking forward to getting back to action as we feel we play well at home,” said Malouf. “Coming off a layoff, we have to make sure our kids are staying in shape and doing all the little things so that when we return to practice after Christmas, we are ready to go.”
--KU--
