CHESTER, Pa. – The Pride earned their third straight win on Saturday after defeating the Eastern University Eagles 56-50. Widener Athletics was celebrating "National Girls and Women in Sports Day," which was on Feb. 1.
The Pride are now 8-13 in the regular season and 5-7 in MAC Commonwealth play.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Three players for the Pride scored 10+ points: D'Ambrosio (20), Lindsay Kutz (11), and Lia Samuels (10).
- The Pride dominated the paint, scoring 34 points there compared to 18 from Eastern.
- Widener collected 11 offensive rebounds and 24 on the defensive side (35 total).
HOW IT HAPPENED AT SCHWARTZ ATHLETIC CENTER
After a few minutes where neither side was able to get on the board, the Pride got their first points of the afternoon on one free throw each from
Mia Robbins and D'Ambrosio. Samuels was then able to convert a triple with 3:33 left in the quarter to make the score 6-5 Eastern. Down by five, Kutz hit back-to-back layups to cut the deficit to one. The quarter ended with a D'Ambrosio turnaround shot that beat the buzzer. The first 10 minutes ended with the score at 14-12 Widener. The Pride hit 60% of their foul shots, and they won the quarter despite only leading for 31 seconds.
As the Eagles coughed up the ball at the beginning of the second quarter, D'Ambrosio cashed in on a driving layup. The Eagles, though, tied the game at 16-16 a few moments later. With the seven-minute mark approaching, the Pride went on a 7-0 run that prompted an Eastern timeout. Ava Baer scored four of those seven points. Widener scored the last two buckets of the half, as Samuels hit a triple and
Mary McFillin's layup was successful. At the end of the first half, Widener held a 28-21 lead. In this quarter, the Pride hit six of their 19 shots (31.6%), and they controlled the glass with five offensive rebounds.
Coming out of the locker room, McFillin was the first player on the board for the Pride with a layup and-one. She hit the free throw along with it. With under six minutes to go, D'Ambrosio was successful on a layup. The score was 33-23 Widener, as the Eagles called timeout. D'Ambrosio then proceeded to take over the game. She scored eight of Widener's next 10 points. Widener led 43-27. Samuels, with time running down, converted either side's only three of the quarter. Through three quarters, the Pride were leading the game 47-34. The Pride scored 19 points in the quarter, which was the most of any quarter for the game.
Despite five straight Eastern points at the start of the final quarter, D'Ambrosio's layup attempts halted the Eagles. She scored the Pride's first four points of the quarter. In this portion of the game, Eastern was making strides for a comeback. But, the Pride were always one step ahead. A layup by
Kimberly Casiello with under three minutes left made the score 53-45 Widener. Free throws from Kutz and D'Ambrosio iced the game. The Pride won 56-50. For the afternoon, the Pride had seven second-chance points, and they were active defensively with seven steals and four blocks.
UP NEXT
The Pride will seek their fourth consecutive victory on Wednesday, Feb. 8. They will be in Annville, Pa. for a conference matchup against the Dutchmen of Lebanon Valley College. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.
