CHESTERTOWN, Pa. – Behind a strong defensive showing and a string of key three-pointers, the Ursinus College women's basketball team defeated Washington College 50-40 on Tuesday evening in the first round of the Centennial Conference playoff tournament.
 

With the victory, the fifth seeded Ursinus improved to 15-11 on the season and 11-10 in conference action. They advance to the semifinals and will take on the top seed No. 1 seed and 12th ranked Johns Hopkins on Friday evening at 8 p.m.

 
Senior Natalie Mehl paced all scorers with 17 points behind tying a season-high five three-pointers and grabbing five rebounds. Junior Chinwe Irondi recorded her 11th double-double of the season tallying 12 points and 13 rebounds, while sophomore Madison Smith added nine points, nine rebounds, and a game-high five assists.

 
Ursinus jumped out to an early 3-2 advantage at the 6:31-mark as senior Sarah DiLello connected on a midrange jump shot and Irondi collected her first free-throw. The Shorewomen quickly responded on the ensuing possession with a three-pointer to regain a 5-3 lead with 6:23 remaining in the first quarter. Seniors Alison Lisanti and Mehl each converted on three-pointers for the Bears, while Washington College responded each time with baskets to tie the score at nine a piece with 3:44 remaining in the opening period. After two minutes of scoreless action, Washinton College closed out the period with the final basket and held an 11-9 lead heading into the second stanza.

 
In the second quarter after being held scoreless for 5:31 of play, the Bears used a layup from Irondi at the 8:32-mark tie the score at 11 apiece. Meanwhile, each defense continued to play well as Washington College was held off the scoreboard for the opening five minutes of the second quarter until a basket from Kristen Rose at the 4:21-mark. The Shorewomen stretched their lead out to 15-11 behind two free throws, but Mehl's second three-pointer of the night brought the Bears deficit to one with 3:17 remaining in the half. Ursinus regained a 16-15 lead at the 2:09-mark as Irondi assisted on a DiLello jump shot to give the Bears a one-point advantage. The Bears closed out the first half on a 6-0 run as Mehl connected on her third three-pointer of the game to give Ursinus a 20-15 lead at halftime.

 
The Shorewomen opened the second half with the opening basket, but Mehl continued to answer for Ursinus with a layup on the other end to keep the lead at five. After a one-of-two trip for Washington College at the charity stripe, Mehl knocked down her fourth triple to extend the Bears lead to 25-18 at the 7:49-mark. On their next possession, Washington College corralled an offensive rebound and tallied a layup to bring their deficit to five points. Junior Madison Smith found Irondi under the basket for an old school three-point opportunity, but a three-pointer from the Shorewomen kept the Bears lead at five. With Ursinus leading 28-23, Smith extended the Bears lead to seven with a stunning turnaround layup with 4:17 remaining in the period. Washington College closed out the third period on a 5-0 run to cut their deficit to 30-28 heading into the final stanza.

 
The Shorewomen opened the final stanza with a layup from Emma Robinson to tie the game at 30 apiece. The Bears responded with a 6-0 run behind four points from Smith and a basket by Irondi to regain a 36-30 advantage with 7:06 to play. Irondi extended the Bears lead to eight behind a perfect 2-for-2 trip at the charity stripe leading to a Shorewomen timeout with 5:31 to play. Washington College tallied a layup out of the timeout, but Smith answered for the Bears with a layup of her own to keep the advantage at 40-32. After a Washington College free throw, DiLello knocked down her second three-pointer of the contest to increase the Bears lead to double-digits. The Shorewomen used a 4-0 run behind a string of perfect trips at the free-throw line to cut their deficit to 43-37 with 2:20 remaining in the contest. On the ensuing possession, senior Kelly Grant answered with a pair of free throws to extend the Bears lead back to eight points. The Shorewomen brought their deficit to just five points behind a three-pointer by Karry Kelliher leading to a Bears timeout. Ursinus responded on their next possession as Mehl recorded her fifth three-pointer of the game to stretch the Bears lead back to eight with 57 seconds remaining. During the play, Smith drove into the paint and Mehl's defender crashed towards the paint leading to an open three-pointer for Mehl and a 48-40 lead for the Bears. Ursinus closed out the contest with two free throws to earn the 50-40 road victory.
 

The Bears shot 32% (16-of-50) from the field, 43.8% (7-of-16) from three-point range, and 64.7% (11-of-17) from the charity stripe. Meanwhile, the Shorewomen shot 25.9% (14-of-54) from the floor, 28.6% (4-of-14) from three-point land, and 80% (8-of-10) from the free-throw line. Serena Pluta led the Shorewomen with a team-high 12 points and 12 rebounds.
 

The Bears return to action on Friday, February 23^rd as they travel to Baltimore, Maryland for a matchup against No. 12 Johns Hopkins in the Centennial Conference semifinals.