LEXINGTON, Va. – For the second time this season, the Washington and Lee women's basketball team broke the program's single-game block record, as the Generals swatted 14 shots in a 61-55 win over Bridgewater on Monday evening.
The Generals improve to 9-3 overall and remain undefeated in ODAC play at 6-0 with the win, and it is also the program's 19th-straight win in the month of January. The team's last January loss came on January 23, 2019, to Emory & Henry. The Eagles fall to 8-2 overall and 3-1 in conference with the loss.
Trailing by five points after a Bridgewater free throw with 9:39 left in the game, the Generals pulled back to within one point with 7:39 to play, on buckets from senior
Kathryn Vandiver (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Latin School), junior
Grace O'Connor (Hillsborough, N.J. / Hillsborough) and sophomore
Lauren Achter (Wyckoff, N.J. / Ramapo). After a layup from BC's Jaden Alsberry, W&L used an 18-8 run to turn a three-point deficit into a seven-point lead with just 93 seconds left in the game.
The run was powered on offense by eight points from first-year
Elka Prechel (Corvallis, Ore. / Corvallis), who began the run with a driving layup and ended the stretch with her fourth three-pointer of the game. The Generals shot 6-of-8 from the field and did not turn the ball over during the run, while forcing four Bridgewater turnovers.
W&L's defense clamped down on the Eagles from the opening tip-off, allowing just three points on 1-of-11 shooting across the first 9:15 of action. During that time, the Generals built up a 14-3 lead before going into the second quarter ahead by a 17-7 margin.
Bridgewater slowly crept back into the game in the second frame by outscoring W&L, 17-9, to trail by a 26-24 score at the half. The Eagles' longest scoring run in the second was eight points from 4:13 to 1:17. Bridgewater kept the momentum going in the third, scoring the first six points, and ultimately producing its largest lead of the game (38-32) with 46 seconds to play in the third.
Schleusner shined with an 18-point, 14-rebound double-double, while also blocking eight shots. Her eight blocks were the most posted in a game by a W&L player since Jessica Hunsinger '07 tied her own program record of nine on February 13, 2007, against Hollins. Schleusner's double-double was her fourth this season and her seventh game with at least 10 boards.
Prechel came in next with 14 points and three assists, as she shot 5-of-10 from the field and 4-for-8 from beyond the arc. O'Connor made her presence felt on both the offensive and defensive ends, with nine points and three assists, plus four rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
The Eagles were led on offense by Alsberry, who scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds in 28 minutes. Erika Nettles notched 11 points on 3-for-7 shooting from the field, and she added three steals on the defensive end.
W&L shot 35.0 percent (21-60) from the field on the night to Bridgewater's 31.3 percent (20-64). The Generals outrebounded the Eagles by a 53-34 margin, including 22 offensive rebounds for the Blue and White, however, Bridgewater held advantages in points off turnovers (22-18), points in the paint (28-24), second-chance points (17-15) and bench points (15-14).
The Generals will be back in action on Wednesday when they travel to Averett for a 2:00 pm ODAC tip-off.
