SALEM, Va. – Sophomore
Quinn McGuinness poured in a career-high 19 points and connected on 4-of-5 three-point shots to propel the 11th-ranked and top-seeded Washington and Lee women's basketball team to an 82-52 win over eighth-seeded Randolph in the ODAC quarterfinals on Friday.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
McGuinness and the Generals (24-2) opened with hot hands, making 4-of-6 long-range shots in the first four minutes of play to run out to a 13-4 lead. McGuinness was responsible for two of the four triples early. The WildCats (16-11) put up a strong effort the remainder of the period, cutting their deficit down to four points, before McGuinness ended the first-quarter scoring with a layup and a made free throw after being fouled.
The second quarter is where W&L put some distance between itself and Randolph, as they began with a 19-0 run that spanned until a pair of Simone Brown free throws at the 2:53 mark. W&L shot 8-of-12 from the field in that span, 3-of-5 from outside the arc, and they limited the WildCats to 0-of-6 shooting and two turnovers.
After starting the second half with a 45-20 lead, McGuinness made her third three-point shot of the game to kickstart an 11-4 run that grew the W&L lead to 32 points. Sophomore
Elka Prechel sank two more triples the rest of the third, coupled with a pair of
Lauren Achter layups, as the game held at a 32-point Generals lead through three quarters. The fourth was the only quarter that Randolph outscored W&L (18-16), with the WildCats making 6-of-13 shots to 4-of-8 for the Blue and White.
TOP PERFORMERS:
McGuinness's 19 points surpassed her previous career high of 14, and she added four rebounds and two assists in the game. Sophomore
Mary Schleusner scored a game-high 20 points (8-15 FG) and pulled down 17 rebounds, dished out four assists and came away with two steals. Prechel rounded out the double-digit scorers for W&L, matching McGuinness's 19 points (6-11 3pt FG), four rebounds and two assists.
Other top performers for the Generals included senior
Hanna Malik at nine points, five rebounds and two assists, as well as sophomore
Sarah Zimmerman with four points, five boards and a team-high five assists.
Jessica Jennings led the Randolph offense with 12 points, followed by Kylie Stark at 11 points. Brown finished as the team's high rebounder (8), while Taniya Jackson had a team-best three steals.
NOTEWORTHY POINTS:
Schleusner cut her chase for 1,000 career points to seven following her 20th 20-point game of the season. Her 17 rebounds also gave her 393 total boards for the season, and no player in program history has ever reached 400 in a single season. For her career, Schleusner needs 19 more rebounds to pass Tonia Dean '98 (755) for sixth most in program history.
Malik made two threes on Friday, which moved her season total to 73. That pushed her ahead of her total from last season (72), as well as two seasons of 72 from Taylor Casey '20 for the fourth-most made three-point field goals in a season in program history. Malik's single-season career high of 75 came in her sophomore season, and it is tied with Meg Ingram '12 for second most in a season.
The Generals have rattled off nine consecutive wins since their only ODAC loss of the season on January 17. Nine straight wins is tied for the third-longest winning streak in program history. The team set the program's winning streak record at 11 games earlier this season.
W&L increased their point total for the season to 2,028, which pushed the Generals ahead of the 2018-19 team's total of 2,016 for the second-most points scored in a season. Last year's team holds the points per game record for a season at 74.5, while this year's team is averaging 78.0 per contest.
Other Top 5 marks updated on Friday in the program's single-season annals include the second-most rebounds (1,333) and fourth-most three-point field goals (206).
TEAM STATS:
W&L shot 49.2 percent (29-59) on Friday, and they made better than 44 percent of their field goals in every quarter. They also sank 13-of-26 three-point shots and had 14 offensive rebounds. The WildCats made 30.0 percent (18-60) of their shots, which was anchored by a 1-of-17 (.059) effort in the second quarter. Randolph outpaced the Blue and White at the free throw line, however, going 15-of-17 to 11-of-23.
UP NEXT:
The Generals will play in the ODAC semifinals on Saturday at 6:00 p.m. at the Salem Civic Center. They will meet the the No. 4 seed Bridgewater, who defeated fifth-seeded Guilford, 86-79, in double overtime in the quarterfinals on Friday.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
