Jan. 18 – WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Bethany College women's basketball team (4-11, 3-5 PAC) wasn't able to overcome a slow start, eventually falling to Washington & Jefferson, 76-59.

The Presidents raced out to a 17-point lead (26-9) after Alexa DelGreco nailed a triple with 9:09 remaining in the first half.

The Bison would not go away however, as they countered with an 8-0 run of their own to trim the deficit to just nine points (26-17) with 6:24 left to play before half. The run was capped off when Sami Schott (Caldwell, Ohio/Shenandoah) converted on a pair of free throws.

The Bison would continue to chip away, getting as close as four points (32-28) after Gabrielle Naples (Salem, Ohio/South Range) drilled a three-point shot with 1:02 left, but Washington & Jefferson would take a six-point lead (34-28) into the halftime break.

W&J would start the second half strong, extending their lead to 13 points (45-32) after Chelsea Apke converted on a layup at the 16:42 mark.

Bethany would chip away at the second-half deficit, going on a mini, 6-1, run to pull to within eight points (46-38) after Schott scored on a driving layup with 14:33 to play.

Unfortunately that would be as close as the Bison would get, as the Presidents went on to win the contest 76-59.

The Bison offensive attack was led by Naples and Lauren Simpson (Washington, Pa./Trinity). Naples notched a game-high 17 points to go along with three rebounds. Simpson tailled 12 points and three rebounds.

The Bison women are back on the court on Jan. 22, when they travel to Crestview Hills, Ky., for a bout with Thomas More. Game time is slated for 5:30 p.m.