WAYNESBURG, Pa. – Chatham Women's Basketball (16-7, 10-5 PAC) held on for a huge 60-51 victory at Waynesburg (12-12, 8-7) on Wednesday night that clinched a spot in the PAC Tournament for the Cougars.
 
Senior Hannah Chenault led the scoring for Chatham with a game-high 14 points and 8 rebounds. Senior Madison Nereu racked up 13 points, 7 boards and 3 steals in 23 minutes. Senior Maria Barela netted 12 points with a team-high 5 assists. Senior Alyssa Laukus shot 4-5 from the field, scoring 9 points while pulling down 9 rebounds and blocking 2 shots  for the Cougars.
 
A 9-2 Chatham scoring run helped the Cougars pull ahead 18-11 early, aided by a Chenault three-point basket. A Julia Calvin layup plus a foul would give Chatham a 6-point advantage going into the second quarter. The Cougars used another 9-2 run in quarter two to take an 11-point lead, with Laukus contributing 5 points in the frame. Jordyn Jensen's layup just prior to halftime put Chatham up 34-23 at the intermsiion.
 
Laukus would open the second half with a bucket before the Yellow Jackets scored 6 consecutive points. They would score just a single point in the final six minutes of the quarter, however, and 6 points from Chenault including another triple gave the Cougars a 44-30 lead. In the fourth, layups from Laukus, Hannah Stephanites, and Emily Venick would push Chatham's advantage to 51-33 with just under eight minutes remaining. Waynesburg would make a comeback attempt, pulling within 5 points with a minute-and-a-half on the clock, but Barela and Chenault each connected on four shots from the charity stripe to seal the Cougars' win.
 
Chatham shot the ball at a 46.7 percent clip in the first half (14-30), but shot just 20 percent (6-30) in the second. The Cougars connected on just 2 of their 18 three-points attempts (11.1 percent), their lowest three-point percentage of the season. However, Chatham held the Yellow Jackets to a 35.1 percent (20-57) shooting night from the floor.
 
Women's Basketball will host Saint Vincent at noon for their senior day on Saturday.