BALTIMORE, Md. - The Baldwin Wallace women's basketball team, led by OAC Coach of the Year Cheri Harrer, bested the William Paterson Pioneers by a score of 75-51 inside Goldfarb Gymnasium in the first round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament at Johns Hopkins University.

BW (25-3) scored 29 in the first half and locked in to score 27 in the third quarter alone. The Jackets' scoring was led by First Team All-OAC junior guard Laura McCoy (Newton Falls/Garrettsville Garfield) with 17 points. BW shot 49.1% from the field and 47.4% from beyond the arc to set the tone for the tournament. The team capitalized on rebounding with 43 total rebounds and 13 second chance points.

BW Leaders (25-3)

• McCoy led the Yellow Jackets' scoring with 17 points, going 8-10 from the field and collecting five rebounds.
• Junior guard Kayla Jones (Grove City) led the team in +/- with 29 to conduct the Jackets' offense with grace.
• Academic All-OAC junior guard Taylor Bass (Strongsville) led the team in threes by going 3-4 while scoring a career-high 16 points.
• Senior All-OAC honorable mention forward Brooke Thompson (Maineville/Little Miami) had nine rebounds with five on offense and four on defense.
• OAC Defensive Player of the Year Alyssa Miller (New Philadelphia) led with two blocks while collecting four defensive rebounds and one steal.

William Paterson Leaders (25-3)  

• Renee Wells led all scorers with 28 points, going 11-25 from the field.
• Jada Jacobs led the team with five rebounds and three steals.
• Wells and Luna Kirby each contributed two assists.

1st Quarter (BW 20-13)  

• McCoy scored the first four points for BW off of a jumper and a layup.
• BW went on a 13-4 run for the last four minutes of the quarter.
• The Yellow Jackets won the rebound battle 9-5.
• Threes rained down with BW going 3-4 from deep.

2nd Quarter (BW 29-20) 

• BW's defense held the Pioneers scoreless for the first 4:29 of the quarter.
• In the paint, BW outscored the Pioneers 14-10
• BW scored four second-chance points while the Pioneers had none
• McCoy hit a jumper at the buzzer to put the Jackets up nine going into halftime. She totaled 11 points to lead BW at the half.

3rd Quarter (BW 56-38)  

• BW started with a 6-0 run for the first 2:15 of the quarter to take a 15-point lead.
• Academic All-OAC senior guard Kaycie Badylak, Bass, and sophomore guard Elise Champagne hit back-to-back-to-back threes midway through the quarter with 4:43 remaining.
• The Yellow Jackets out-rebounded William Paterson 12-3.
• BW capitalized with 11 second-chance points and 15 bench points.

 
4th Quarter (BW 75-51) 

• Bass landed a three at 7:09 on the clock to give BW a 20-point lead.
• The Brown and Gold went 6-12 from the field, 2-3 from deep, and 5-6 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter.

Up Next  

• The Yellow Jackets will return to Goldfarb Gymnasium at Johns Hopkins University to face the winner of the Johns Hopkins (Md.) vs. Hunter (N.Y.) game tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. in the second round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament.