Statesmen Falter in Atchison
Atchison, Kan.–The Statesmen women’s basketball team could not keep up with the Benedictine Ravens as it fell 70-49 in Heart of America play Saturday.
In a game where it was outshot 37.5%-32.1%, WPU (2-5, 0-1) kept things close through the first half until the Ravens (4-2, 1-0) pulled away in the third.
The Statesmen were the first ones on the board and did battle with the Ravens through the first quarter, going back and forth when [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/lawhorne_taylor_ssrm]Taylor Lawhorne (Sr., Amityville, N.Y., Business Management) made the last basket of the quarter before Benedictine pulled out to a 14-11 lead at the end of the first.
The second stanza saw the Ravens pull out to a 21-11 lead before [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/peoples_kayla_925t]Kayla Peoples (Sr., Waco, Texas, Secondary Education) hit a big three-pointer to stop the run. The squads stayed competitive for the rest of the quarter until [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/smith_dekota_ktpi]Dekota Smith (Jr., Toledo, Ohio, Computer Science) hit a shot a shot at the end of the half to cut Benedictine’s lead to 31-24.
Lawhorne opened scoring in the second half with a three-point jumper to make it 31-27. [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/lawhorne_taylor_ssrm]Taylor Lawhorne went on to end the day with five points and five rebounds. From that point the Ravens started to pull away until the end of the third as William Penn trailed 52-40.
The fourth stanza at Benedictine extended its margin, using a 46-30 advantage in rebounds to achieve a 17-6 advantage in second-chance points.
The Ravens also held the edge in free throws, going 19-for-27, while the Statesmen went 7-for-13.
William Penn held the edge in turnover, committing 17, while Benedictine committed 19. The Statesmen used these to their advantage, scoring 10 points off of turnover while the Ravens only had seven.
Peoples paced her team with 14 points, while also pacing the team with seven rebounds. [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/jones_kayla_1dw7]Kayla Jones (Sr., Louisville, Ky., Psychology) was next behind her in points, with nine. Neva’eh Diaz-Doolin (Fr., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Biology) and [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/smith_dekota_ktpi]Dekota Smith each contributed seven points, and [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/lawhorne_taylor_ssrm]Taylor Lawhorne ended her outing with five points and rebounds.
Leading the way for the Statesmen in assists were [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/jones_kayla_1dw7]Kayla Jones and [/sports/wbkb/2025-26/bios/carter_breacia_ok72]Breacia Carter (Jr., South Beloit, Ill., General Accounting) with two apiece.
“We struggled to keep Benedictine off the offensive glass all night.” Head Coach Sheawn Bedford Jr. said. “I thought our effort was great, but our lack of execution hurt us in this game”
