Dec 5, 2021 6 min read

It was a big day for the Waynesburg University men’s basketball team, as it hosted Franciscan for a Presidents’ Athletic Conference battle. Playing in front of a raucous home crowd and honoring legendary former head coach Rudy Marisa during a halftime ceremony, the Jackets improved to 3-0 in conference play by downing the Barons 75-67 on Saturday.

The win gives Waynesburg (5-2, 3-0) its best start to PAC play since the 1999-2000 campaign, which was led by Coach Marisa. The Jackets are also off to their best seven-game start to a season since a 5-2 open to the 2006-07 campaign.

Saturday’s game was billed as a battle between one of the most productive offenses in all of Division III and one of the stingiest defenses in the nation. Prior to coming to the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse, the Barons (3-4, 1-2) were averaging 97.3 points per game, which ranked them eighth in the country. Waynesburg’s stifling defensive effort held the Barons more than 30 points below that average. The Jackets were even more impressive in the first half, when Franciscan scored just 24 points.

Senior Matt Popeck, a graduate of Washington High School, came up with the play of the game as he not only forced a turnover with 30 seconds left on the clock, but he converted the steal into fast break layup. Ironically, the Jackets were able to put the game away at the free throw line thanks to four makes on four attempts by junior guard Ryan Felberg that put his team up 75-65.

Popeck led a balanced Waynesburg offense that featured four double-digit scorers. The veteran guard tallied a team-high 18 points while also logging a squad-best six assists, pulling down five rebounds and swiping a team-high three steals.

East Stroudsburg, 89-82: The California University Vulcans battled foul trouble and nearly erased a 16-point deficit on Saturday night before suffering an 89-82 loss at East Stroudsburg in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Crossover play.

With the loss, the Vulcans fell to 5-2 this season with a 1-1 mark in league action. The Warriors improve to 2-3 overall behind a 2-1 record in conference action. East Stroudsburg was picked second in the preseason PSAC East poll after winning five divisional titles since 2013.

Senior transfer Preston Boswell registered his second 20-point game of the year after leading the team with 20 points. He made six-of-nine from the floor and converted six-of-six from the three-throw line. Boswell is averaging 13.9 points per game this season and has now scored over 1,330 points in his collegiate career.

Freshman Keith Palek III posted his second double-double of the season at East Stroudsburg. He scored a season-high 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including three-of-five from beyond the arc, and tied season high with 10 rebounds (three offensive), plus added three assists. Junior Zyan Collins scored 17 points on 5-of-10 from the field and six-of-six from the free throw line and collected eight rebounds (three offensive) and four assists.

Sophomore Philip Alston finished with 16 points on 8-of-16 from the field and eight rebounds before fouling out.

W&J, 103-63: Four Washington & Jefferson players scored in double figures as the Presidents men’s basketball team routed Saint Vincent 103-63 Saturday afternoon in a Presidents’ Athletic Conference victory at the Robert S. Carey Center.

The 103 points allowed the Presidents to eclipse the century mark for a fourth time in eight games this season.

Nick Gearhart turned in a near flawless offensive performance. The sophomore guard finished with a game-high 25 points on nine-of-11 shooting from the field. He drained six-of-seven free throw attempts and added five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Sophomore guard J.R. Mazza finished with 20 points with a six-for-12 performance from behind the three-point line.

Women’s results

Waynesburg, 83-55: The Waynesburg University women’s basketball team jumped out to a big early lead and never looked back as the Jackets rolled to an 83-55 Presidents’ Athletic Conference win.

Saturday marked the most points scored by the Jackets (1-7, 1-2) this season and the fewest points given up to the opposition in a game. The victory over the Barons (0-7, 0-3) also featured Waynesburg’s widest margin of victory since a 93-58 win over Geneva on Feb. 5, 2020.

Waynesburg boasted a pair of players who logged double-doubles in the win. Sophomore guard Avery Robinson poured in a game-high 20 points on an 8-of-11 shooting day. She was particularly accurate from long range, drilling four-of-six three-point attempts. She tied for the team high with 10 rebounds and dished out five assists during a very busy day on the floor.

Senior guard Kacey Kastroll tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds. Senior center Brooke Fuller shook off a slow start to pile up 18 points and seven rebounds. She scored 12 points, yanked down four rebounds and swatted all three of her blocks over the final two quarters.

Cal, 69-29: The California University Vulcans allowed less than 30 points for the first time in over a decade on Saturday evening while rolling to a 69-29 victory at East Stroudsburg in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Crossover play.

Cal improved to 5-1 overall behind a 1-1 mark in conference action. The Vulcans yielded their fewest point total since surrendering 28 points to Molloy (N.Y.) on Nov. 28, 2010. Meanwhile, the Warriors fell to 0-5 on the season with an 0-3 record in league play.

Junior transfer Dejah Terrell paced four players in double-digits and recorded her third double-double of the season while playing just three quarters. She totaled 21 points and tied her season high with 11 rebounds (four offensive). Terrell finished the game shooting 8-of-13 from the floor, including three-of-five from behind the arc, and added three blocks in 24 minutes.

W&J, 54-52 OT: The Washington & Jefferson women’s basketball team forced a season-high 28 turnovers in a 54-52 overtime victory over Saint Vincent in a Presidents’ Athletic Conference matchup Saturday afternoon.

The win was the fourth straight for W&J, which moves to 5-2 overall and 2-0 in the PAC. The loss drops Saint Vincent to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in league games. The matchup was the 40th all-time between the two conference rivals, as W&J holds a slight 22-18 advantage in a hard-fought head-to-head series.

A three-point play by Ella Marconi brought the Bearcats within a point at 53-52 with 38 seconds to play in the extra session. A split by Adalynn Cherry at the free throw line made it a two-point lead for W&J with just 20 ticks left.

The Bearcats had three shots from inside 10 feet in the closing seconds but could not convert to force a second overtime.