The Saint Vincent College women's basketball faced the Washington and Jefferson Presidents in the semifinals of the PAC Women's Basketball Tournament. W&J outscored the Bearcats by 11 points in the second period to secure the 74-53 win.
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The Presidents opened the contest with an 8-0 run that forced an SVC timeout. Out of the break, Saint Vincent went on a run of its own as
Jenna Lafko completed a three-point play to even the score at eight with 4:07 on clock. Both squads went back and forth until W&J took a 17-12 lead. Lafko made a jumper in the final 10 seconds to pull the Bearcats within three (17-14).
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In the second period, the Presidents scored the opening seven points and held a 10-point advantage.
Taylor Boring ended the run with a layup but W&J answered with one of its own.
Madison Kollar made the deficit eight again, but the Presidents took a 12-point lead with 3:09 left in the first half.
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Lafko made two free throws to make the score 30-20 but W&J closed the half by scoring the final four points and led 34-20 at the break. In the second period, W&J held SVC to six points while the visitors scored 17.
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In the third, Saint Vincent tried to cut the deficit but the closest it got was 12 points before the Presidents opened the lead to 20 (54-34) to end the period. The narrative repeated in the fourth as W&J held on for the 21-point victory and a trip to the championship game against Grove City. The Wolverines won the first half of the doubleheader over the Westminster Titans, 70-58.
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Kollar led all the Bearcats with 18 points while Lafko finished the night with 15. W&J's Alie Seto led all scorers with game-high 34 points and 13 rebounds. The Presidents outrebounded Saint Vincent 37-22 on the night. The Bearcats finish the season 19-7 overall with a conference record of 15-1.
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Before the game, the Presidents' Athletic Conference announced its All-Conference teams and award winners. Lafko was voted the PAC Player of the Year and was named First Team All-PAC. The junior guard was joined by Kollar on the First Team.
Kayla Slovenec was named All-PAC Honorable Mention while
Paige Montrose represented SVC on the PAC Sportsmanship Team.
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