'On This Day' Women’s Basketball Team Advances to First Conference Final
'On This Day' is a Wells College Athletics feature series taking a look back on events that occurred on this day, March 1, eight years ago in 2014.
LANCASTER, Pa. – For the first time in program history, the Wells College women's basketball team will play for the North Eastern Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Championship after a 54-51 victory over the Bison of Gallaudet University on Saturday, March 1, 2014, at the Horst Athletic Center.
The Express, in only their fourth year of existence as a modern day varsity program, collected their second-ever playoff victory and will play for their first NEAC title on Sunday, Mar. 2 at 3:00 p.m. on the campus of Lancaster Bible College. Wells will face-off against the host Chargers, who earlier in the season defeated the Express by a 67-58 margin in Aurora. Last season, Lancaster Bible knocked the Express out of the playoffs with a 69-50 win on Feb. 23, 2013.
Senior captain Ashley Roser recorded her 81st collegiate double-double in the game, posting a team-best 25 points alongside 11 total rebounds for Wells. Along with her 62nd double-double against a NEAC opponent, Roser stands only two double-doubles shy of tying the all-time NCAA Division III record set by Kathryn Stockbower of Swarthmore College.
Kaitlynne Knapp ranked second on the team in scoring in the semifinal conference win, shooting 7-for-12 from the floor to tally 14 total points. She also accumulated three blocks, leading both teams in that category. Cassie Smythe led all Wells players with three assists off the bench for the Express.
After Gallaudet took the lead by a 21-17 margin with 6:27 left in the first half, both teams remained scoreless until Lindsay Achzet converted a jump shot nearly three minutes later to cut into the Bison advantage. Wells would eventually score the half's final four points by using a Theresa Hernandez layup and a Knapp jumper down the stretch.
Wells did not relinquish the lead for the remainder of the game, scoring the first four points of the second half following an Achzet jumper and a Roser layup in the second half's first 1:29. Britny Latham added instant offense for the Bison, cutting into the Express' six point lead with 17:46 left in the second half.
Gallaudet cut the score to two points three different times down the stretch, but the Express were able to keep the Bison at arm's length. Gallaudet, who trailed by seven points with 45 seconds left in regulation, saw back-to-back three pointers by Latham in the final 28 seconds to make things interesting. Wells, however, took advantage of a layup by Smythe with 16 seconds left on the clock to add insurance.
Boxscore: https://wells-express.com/sports/wbkb/2013-14/boxscores/20140301_ygap.xml?view=boxscore
