Petersburg, VA - The Johnson & Wales Charlotte women's basketball team advanced to the national finals with a 70-67 win over 8th seeded Penn State-Beaver on Wednesday afternoon.

How It Happened:

• Penn State-Beaver opened the game on a 7-0 run.
• JWU tied the score at 11 on a Tanaeschia Dorsey 3-pointer with 3:15 to play in the quarter.
• The Lions scored 9 of the final 15 points of the quarter to take a 20-17 lead after the first period.
• A Tanaeshia Dorsey 3-pointer at the 7:12 mark of the 2nd quarter gave the Wildcats their first lead of the game.
• JWU pushed their lead to as much as six before Beaver rallied to cut their deficit to one at the halftime break, 36-35.
• Jordan Durant hit a 3-pointer to open the 3rd quarter, giving the Wildcats a four point bulge, 39-35.
• Beaver rallied to briefly take the lead, but back-to-back 3-pointers from Jayla Lovett late in the period gave JWU a 57-50 lead after 30 minutes.
• Lovett connected again from long distance to open the 4th quarter to give the Wildcats their largest lead of the game, 60-50.
• Beaver responded with an 11-0 run over the next 3 minutes to take a one point lead.
• The teams traded the lead back and forth over the next five minutes until Durant's sixth 3-pointer of the game gave JWU a 70-67 lead with just over a minute left.
• Beaver committed a turnover and missed a shot on their final two possessions.

Key Stats:

• JWU hit ten 3-pointers, their second highest total of the season.
• The Wildcats shot just 35.6%, as compared to 44.6% for Beaver, but took 17 more shots.
• JWU forced 21 Lion turnovers.
• Durant led the Wildcats with 24 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.
• Dorsey scored 16 points to go along with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.
• Lovett scored 15 points while Aimee Evans recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Up Next:

JWU takes on 3rd seeded Cincinnati-Clermont in the USCAA Division II National Championship game today at 5:30pm.