King's College Athletics

WILKES-BARE, PA (November 11, 2023) -- The King's College women's basketball team picked up their first win of the season and first in front of their home crowd at McGrane Gymnasium with a 58-53 win over Centenary University on Saturday afternoon. The Monarchs improve to 1-1 overall, while the Cyclones drop to 1-1.
 
It was a back-and-forth affair from the start with neither team leading by more than three points with Centenary (1-1) on top, 14-13, after the first 15 minutes of action. A five-point spurt from Deanna Wallace put King's (1-1) ahead, 18-14, with 6:32 to go in the half, while a 6-3 run midway through the quarter gave the Monarchs the push to hold a 28-25 advantage at halftime.
 
Rowan Murray put up the first four points of the third quarter before Brenna Costello and Alli Lindsay added baskets in the early push as the Monarchs built an 11-point advantage, 36-25, with 5:31 left in the frame. The Cyclones chipped away at the lead and remained close before heading into the final period with King's ahead, 43-38. The Monarchs used a pair of threes from Lindsay and another triple from Wallace to help build their cushion, 52-41, with 7:41 left in the game, but despite a comeback attempt from Centenary the Monarchs came out on top, 58-53, to pick up their first win early in the 2023-24 season.
 
Lindsay led King's with 16 points, connecting for three three's, while adding team-highs of three assists and two steals to go along with five boards. Caileigh Costello posted eight points with a team-best eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals, while both Murray and Wallace came off the bench to add eight points a piece with Murray adding a block. Brenna Costello also collected two takeaways with a block.
 
Vatijah Davis led all scorers with 31 points and 16 rebounds, while Kaylie Elsbree and Tanya Elsbree dished out three assists.
 
King's shot 38.9 percent from the floor (21-54) in the win, connecting for seven threes, while dishing out 16 assist on 21 baskets. The Monarchs defense forced 16 turnovers and limited the Cyclones to an abysmal 1-12 from beyond the arc. Inside the stat sheet, King's had the edge in second-chance points (10-7) and bench points (25-7).
 
The Monarchs will be back on the road on Wednesday night, taking on Montclair State in Montclair, NJ at 6:00 p.m.