The West Chester women’s basketball team continued on their strong play with two dominant wins this week, both PSAC conference battles. First, on Wednesday was Cheyney University followed by Saturday against Mansfield University.
Wednesday’s contest was the second meeting between WCU and Cheyney this season, with the last game resulting in a 93-44 win for the Rams. West Chester looked to repeat that result on Wednesday when they traveled to a packed Cope Hall at Cheyney University. Cheyney always brings a wild crowd to their games, presenting a big challenge for WCU; drowning out the fans.
From the start, the Lady Rams came out of the gates slower than usual, with Cheyney leading 9-7 after the first five minutes of play. Sophomore Dallas Ely lit a fire under the Rams with a three-pointer, leading to a 13-0 run for West Chester. WCU dominated the first half with a balanced attack from their starting five. At the halfway point, the Rams held a 17-point lead, 47-30.
West Chester came out of the half firing on all cylinders, improving their lead to 31 at one point, but a late run by Cheyney cut the lead to just 16. Once again, Ely sank another three for the Rams, which led to a strong run and eventually a win for West Chester.
West Chester’s starting five continued their outstanding team play, with all five girls ending the game with double-digit points. Sophomore Brittany Sicinski dominated yet again, adding 20 points and seven assists. Sophomore Anna Kuntz recorded her third double double with 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. Junior Kendall Benvoy notched 14 points along with eight rebounds and sophomore Jasmen Clark added 10 points, five assists, and five steals. The balanced attack from the Rams starting five proved to be too much for Cheyney to handle, and the Rams improved to 13-6 on the season with the 95-66 win.
Saturday’s game against a struggling Mansfield University team would turn into a dominant win for the Rams. The Rams came out strong, jumping to an early 20-6 lead. WCU did not look back at all, continuing their great play. West Chester dominated the whole game, not giving Mansfield any room for a comeback, eventually resulting in a 92-62 win for the Lady Rams. Ely led West Chester with 23 while Sicinski added 16. Kuntz also recorded her second consecutive game with a double double, dropping 10 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
With the win, WCU improved to 14-6, and 9-1 in conference play. On the chemistry of the starting five, Ely stated, “ We are all pretty much the same age and the oldest girl is Kendall (Benvoy), who is only a junior. This helps with there being no seniority really and we all get along, so it makes it relaxing and easier to play.” Ely is right; the young Rams’ team certainly plays as a strong unit, shown through their success.
The upcoming week presents two more big challenges for the Rams, with conference games against Millersville University and Kutztown University; both will take place in Hollinger Field House. Moving forward, West Chester will look to improve their hot-streak and continue to find success playing team basketball. “The first thing is to take them each one game at a time” Ely stated on the upcoming games, . “Other than that we just need to continue to play as a team, play fundamental basketball and stay relaxed and confident.”
On the shoulders of these values, the Rams will attempt to continue their successful season and keep working toward the goal of a PSAC championship, something that seemed almost out of reach at the beginning of the season for this young and hungry team.
AJ Arcaini is a second-year student majoring in communication studies with a minor in journalism. He can be reached at AA 788494@wcupa.edu