PITTSBURGH – On Tuesday, the defending PAC Champion Chatham Cougars will host the Bethany Bison in the Women's Basketball PAC Tournament Quarterfinal at the Athletic and Fitness Center at 7 p.m.

The Cougars, who captured the three-seed in this year's tournament, come into the game with a 19-5 overall record and a 17-3 conference record, while the Bison, who earned the six seed, are 13-12 overall and 10-10 in PAC play.

Chatham swept the season series between the two schools with a 75-50 win in Pittsburgh on Jan. 4 and a 84-51 victory at Bethany on Feb. 12. In the first contest, Charjae Brock led the Cougars with 14 points, seven rebounds and seven steals, while Alyssa Laukus had 10 points and nine rebounds. In the second matchup, Hannah Chenault netted 21 points, with five three-pointers, to go along with six rebounds and three steals. Ashlie Louden added 16 points, while Brock and Madison Nereu scored 15 each.

These two sides also met in last year's PAC Tournament, with the two-seeded Cougars defeating the three-seeded Bison 66-56 in the PAC Semifinal. Chatham is 7-7 all-time in the PAC Tournament and 2-1 against Bethany.

Chatham owns the #1 scoring offense (78.7 points per game) and the #1 scoring defense (53.8 points allowed per game) in the conference, while Bethany ranks sixth in scoring offense (69.6 points per game) and fourth in scoring defense (63.2 points allowed per game).

Each team features a guard in the PAC's top five in scoring, with Chatham's Ashlie Louden ranking fourth at 15.5 points per game and Bethany's Lindsey Garrison in fifth at 13.8 points per game.

The winner of this matchup will advance to face the number two seed Allegheny Gators in Meadville on Thursday night. A link to the tournament bracket can be found here.

The winner of the PAC's Championship Tournament will receive the league's automatic qualifying bid to this year's Division III Championship Tournament. The selected Division III Championship teams, as well as the first and second round site selections, will be announced Monday, March 3rd. First and second round games are scheduled for Friday-Saturday, March 7-8.