SALEM, Va. – The Washington and Lee women's basketball team used a pair of lengthy runs, one in each half, to claim the program's second ODAC title on Sunday by a score of 73-57 over Shenandoah.
With the win, the Generals improve to 22-6 overall this season and clinch the ODAC's automatic bid into the NCAA Championship. It will mark the program's third all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and it will be the second straight showing after earning an at-large bid last season.
The Generals had a sluggish start to the game, but only trailed by four with 3:42 remaining in the first quarter. W&L then shook the rust by using a 14-0 run into the second quarter to move ahead, 24-14. The run was a team effort, as junior
Hanna Malik (Raleigh, N.C. / Athens Drive), senior
Kathryn Vandiver (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Latin School) and first-year
Mary Schleusner (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Latin School) each had four points in that span.
The Hornets (19-10) rebounded with a 12-4 spurt to cut it back to a 28-26 ball game with just under a minute to play in the half. Then, a free throw from first-year
Sofia Feigelson (Millbrook, N.Y. / Millbrook School) and a deep three banked in at the buzzer from Malik gave W&L a six-point halftime lead.
Still ahead by six points after the first minute of the third quarter, Schleusner and Vandiver dominated for the Blue and White, as they each scored eight points during an 18-0 run, which gave the Generals a 52-30 advantage at the 3:13 mark. That lead proved too much for the Hornets, as the smallest margin for the remainder of the game was the final difference of 16 points, with a W&L high of 28 points (63-35) with 9:14 left in the game.
Schleusner, who was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, led the way for the Blue and White with 30 points, 19 rebounds and five blocks, while shooting 12-of-23 from the field. Schleusner's 30 points marked the first 30-point game for a General since Taylor Casey '20 dropped 36 against Roanoke on November 11, 2018. Schleusner's 19 rebounds tied for the fifth-most in a game in program history, and that mark also ballooned her season total to a program-record 323. Additionally, Schleusner finished the three-game run to the title with 40 total rebounds, the fifth most in a single ODAC Tournament.
Vandiver finished the day with a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double, to go along with five assists and three blocks. Malik contributed 12 points and added six boards and seven dimes. The duo of Vandiver and Malik was also announced as members of the All-Tournament team along with Schleusner.
Terese Greene led Shenandoah's offense with 16 points, to 14 for Madisen Kimble and 12 for Gabby Krystofiak. Green added three assists and three steals, Kimble finished with six boards, six dimes and four thefts, and Krystofiak shot 5-of-7 from the field. Shawnise Campbell came away with 13 rebounds, including five on the offensive glass.
W&L ended the game shooting 43.5 percent (27-62) to 28.6 percent (20-70) for the Hornets. There was also a decided advantage in shooting in favor of W&L in the third quarter, as the Generals shot 64.7 percent (11-17) to 12.5 percent (2-16) for the Hornets.
The Generals will find out who and where they will play in the NCAA Tournament on Monday during the NCAA selection show at 2:30 pm at NCAA.com.
