CALIFORNIA (March 5) – Junior
Miki Glenn (Bridgeport, W.Va./Bridgeport) and sophomores
Seairra Barrett (Center Twp., Pa./Central Valley) and
Shatara Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) accounted for over 60 points on Saturday afternoon in leading the Vulcans to a 78-62 win over Shippensburg at Hamer Hall in the semifinals of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.
With the victory, the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team improves to 23-5 overall behind a 12-game winning streak. The Vulcans will now face IUP in the PSAC Championship tomorrow, Sunday, March 6 at 3 p.m. Meanwhile, the Raiders finish the season with a 21-7 record.
Glenn scored a game-high 25 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the floor and six-of-six from the free-throw line. She also collected six rebounds, seven assists and four steals while playing all 40 minutes. The PSAC West Athlete of the Year is averaging 21.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.8 steals over her last five games in the league tournament dating back to last season.
Barrett and Parsons each finished with 18 points and five rebounds against the Raiders. Parsons shot 9-of-14 from the floor and also recorded two blocks, while Barrett made 8-of-14 attempts from the field and also tallied three assists while playing all 40 minutes.
Redshirt freshman
Morgan Jennings (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg) added seven points, two rebounds and two steals off the bench, while junior
Precious Martin (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) collected five rebounds.
Shippensburg scored eight of 10 points early in the game to take an 8-4 lead with 6:46 left in the first quarter. The Vulcans then went on a 17-4 run after making 8-of-10 shots from the floor to build a 21-12 lead at the end of the quarter. Parsons scored 10 of her 18 points in the first quarter.
Cal U opened the second quarter with eight-straight points to build a 29-19 lead on a layup by Jennings with 7:33 remaining before halftime. The Vulcans later extended their first-half lead to as many as 20 points, 36-16, on a layup by Barrett with 4:57 left in the second quarter. Cal U eventually took a 42-26 lead at halftime after holding Shippensburg to only nine field goals.
The teams traded points in the opening half of the third quarter before the Raiders scored eight-unanswered points cut the deficit to 51-40 with 1:49 left in the quarter. Cal U snapped a three-plus minute scoreless streak with a pair of free-throws by Glenn at the 1:12-mark, which started a 7-0 run that let the Vulcans stretch their lead to 58-40 near the end of the third quarter.
Shippensburg worked the deficit down to 64-52 with 7:00 remaining in the game before the Vulcans made back-to-back three-pointers to take a 70-54 lead at the 6:02-mark. Cal U later scored eight-straight points to take a 78-58 lead with 2:15 left to play before being held scoreless for the remainder of the game.
Cal U shot over 60 percent in the first half before finishing with a .541 field-goal percentage (33-of-61). Meanwhile, Shippensburg made 48.0 percent (24-of-50) from the floor. The Vulcans out-rebounded the Raiders by a 31-27 margin and scored 24 points off turnovers in the victory.
Junior Colleen Young led the Raiders with 18 points on 9-of-11 shooting, while classmate Lauren Gold posted 12 points, four rebounds and five assists. Fellow junior Morgan Griffith, who was selected PSAC East Athlete of the Year, finished with 11 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes while battling second-half foul trouble.
The Vulcans will host IUP in the PSAC Championship tomorrow in Hamer Hall at 3 p.m. The Crimson Hawks advanced to the finals with a 77-64 victory against West Chester, the top seed from the East, on Saturday afternoon. Cal U and IUP met in the PSAC Tournament for five-straight years from 2007-11, including in the title game from 2007-09 with the Crimson Hawks winning each time.
