(box score)
Widener once again got significant contributions from its bench and never trailed in a 70-56 win over McDaniel in the McDaniel Tip-Off Tournament consolation game in Westminster, MD.
Widener led by as many as 23-8 at the 10-minute mark following a layup by freshman Joanna Persiano (Ventnor, NJ), who dropped 13 off the bench in the period. This capped a 10-0 run for the Pride, less than four minutes after an 8-0 spurt.
McDaniel cut the lead to four by halftime, closing the period on an 11-2 run over the last three and a half minutes. The hosts went 13-of-19 from the free throw line in the half. Widener shot just 2-of-4.
Freshman Alyssa Wiggins (Swedesboro, NJ) added 10 off the bench in the first stanza for Widener. Persiano and Wiggins combined to shoot 8-of-14 from the field in the period, and 6-of-10 from beyond the arc.
The Green Terror (0-2) scored the first three points of the second half to trim their deficit to one, but that was as close as they would get. Widener countered with a 15-4 surge and never led by less than nine the rest of the way, expanding its lead to as many as 17 on two different occasions.
The Pride (3-1) forced 14 second half turnovers and only committed six.
Widener shot 48 percent (11-of-23) from downtown in the contest, and earned a 35-14 edge in bench scoring.
Persiano finished in double figures off the bench for the third straight contest, notching a game-high 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range. Wiggins finished with 13 points. Vanessa Hejnas (Delran, NJ) shot 4-of-6 from the field for eight points and hauled in eight rebounds, and fellow sophomore Lil Carney (Narberth, PA) dished seven assists.
Sophomore Francesca Lee (Hainesport, NJ) was named to the all-tournament team. She totaled 26 points in the two contests, knocking down 9-of-19 field goals, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc, and brought down 16 rebounds, 10 of which were offensive.
Kim Acton recorded 14 points and four steals for McDaniel. Cara Thompson posted 13 points and eight rebounds, and Whitney Snoops notched 11 points and eight boards.
Widener on Wednesday travels to Aston, PA to face Neumann at 6:00 pm.
