On a day in which senior guard Dana Wert was six points shy of eclipsing the 1,000-point milestone for her illustrious SU career, the Raiders were entering a contest against a team that mirrored them in style, speed and intensity — the Golden Rams of West Chester University.
Dana Wert broke the mark within the game’s first 10 minutes. Sarah Strybuc’s 21-point effort helped the Raiders dismantle WCU 75–55 Wednesday night at Heiges Field House.
“I think it’s a great achievement,” Dana Wert said. “I never got it in high school and to do it in college is awesome.”
Dana Wert joins her sister, Shawna as a member of the 1,000-point club, and in a night where the backcourt needed to perform, the twin power these two displayed was in full effect.
Shawna Wert proved to be the catalyst of the Raiders’ offense, dishing out seven assists allowing Dana and Strybuc to net 42 of the team’s 75 points in the contest.
“Us three together is the perfect combo,” Dana Wert said.
“We have a lot of chemistry together,” Strybuc said. “We talk really well together.”
The Raiders needed that chemistry early on as they came out sluggish. Falling behind 17–7 early in the first half, SU’s head coach Kristy Trn called a timeout to regroup — the timeout worked wonders.
SU traded buckets with the Golden Rams to keep the deficit at 10, but behind Dana Wert’s eight points, the Raiders raced out to a 13–0 run to take the lead. Offensive input from freshman forward Mariah Traywick kept the Golden Rams at bay and gave the Raiders a 33–29 lead heading into the break.
The Raiders stormed out of the gate in the second half, outscoring WCU 13–6 in the first few minutes of the frame. Strybuc came alive, netting 16 of her 21 points, enabling the Raiders to build a comfortable margin. The junior added six free-throws at the end of the game to seal the 20-point victory.
The victory gives the Raiders sole possession of fourth place in the PSAC East and with contests against East Stroudsburg University and Millersville University, the Raiders will be put to the test if they want to keep their position.
“We have to win them all,” Strybuc and Dana Wert said in unison. “We need to play defense, the offense will come from that.”
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