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Heading into the day, just eight games remained on Waynesburg’s schedule for the 2024-25 women’s basketball season, and with Geneva sitting two and a half games ahead of Waynesburg for the final playoff spot in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference standings, the playoff implications loomed large for this game.
At the end, it was the Yellow Jackets standing tall, winning 83-71 and moving to just a game and a half back of a playoff spot.
Guard Kalista Friday led Waynesburg in scoring with 20 points and guard Kara McFadden contributed 15 points off the bench with three three-point shots.
“It was very important to win this game against someone who’s in the top six in the conference because we need every win that we can get, especially if it’s one of those top teams,” McFadden said. “We lost to them at their place last time, so we knew we had to get even with them and go 1-1 to fight for a spot in the playoffs.”
Both teams traded punches for 35 minutes, with 11 ties, 11 lead changes, and no team having more than a seven-point lead until the final four minutes of the game.
After a Geneva three by Abby Shoaff tied the game at 69, Waynesburg went on a 14-2 run to end the game.
“The biggest key was that we kept our composure,” Friday said. “There were a lot of questionable calls in the third quarter that got some of our key players in foul trouble, but we kept our minds straight which ultimately led us to play together.”
It flipped the script from the last time the Golden Tornadoes and Yellow Jackets matched up. On November 23rd, Waynesburg had a one-point lead heading into the fourth quarter but ended up losing 86-80 in their first conference game of the season.
“We did the basics this time,” McFadden said. “Last time we made some mistakes that we learned from and fixed this time around. We knocked down shots when they mattered, we had great ball movement, it was a great team effort.”
The win brings Waynesburg’s conference record to 5-8. Their next two games are against two of the PAC’s top three teams, Chatham and Allegheny.
“It’s going to take hard work and determination to get these wins [against Chatham and Allegheny],” McFadden said. “We’re focused on only one game at a time so for now it’s Chatham. Chatham is the number two seed right now, but we fought hard the first time around and were about even with them throughout the first half of the game. So, a key to this game is being able to play all 4 quarters and not let up. It’s going to take a whole team effort Wednesday.”
There isn’t much room for error in any of the final seven games on the Yellow Jackets schedule for them to earn a playoff bid.
“We know there is a chance, but we know we are going to have to finish out the season strong and give it all we got,” Friday said when asked about the team’s playoff chances.
Waynesburg’s upcoming game against Chatham this Wednesday will tip off at 5:30 p.m. at the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse.