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Box Score
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CALIFORNIA (March 13) – Facing one of top scoring defenses in the country, the No. 25 Vulcans suffered a 74-63 loss to Millersville on Saturday evening at Hamer Hall in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
With the loss, the second-seeded California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team finishes its season with a 24-8 record under first-year head coach
Mark Swasey. Meanwhile, sixth-seeded Millersville improves to 25-5 and advances to its first NCAA Regional Championship since 2000. The Marauders will now travel to Erie, Pa., to face top-seed and undefeated Gannon in the Sweet 16 on Monday, March 15, at the Hammermill Center with tip-off set for 7 p.m.
Prior to Saturday, the Vulcans had defeated the Marauders in two previous meetings in the NCAA Tournament (2003, 2008). Cal U now holds a 19-9 all-time record in the NCAA post-season and failed to advance to the regional championship for the first time since 2007. Earlier this season, Millersville posted a 53-52 victory over Cal U at Hamer Hall to snap the Vulcans' 26-home winning streak.
Senior guard
Brooque Williams (Pittsburgh, Pa./Perry) scored 16 of her game-high 22 points in the second half, finishing the game shooting 7-of-14 from the field and 8-of-12 from the free-throw line. An All-America finalist, she also added five steals in her final college game to set the all-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) record at 424. Williams finished her career as one of the most accomplished players in school history, setting several school marks including both the single-season (744 points; 2008-09) and career (2,205) scoring records.
In the loss, junior forward
Kayla Smith (Elkins, W.Va./Elkins) posted 12 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and three blocks. She finished the year with 25 doubles-doubles in 32 games and also established a new single-season school record with 381 rebounds, which ranks as the fifth-highest total in conference history.
Redshirt freshman guard
Kiara Brown (Ambridge, Pa./Ambridge) added 11 points off the bench, while redshirt sophomore forward
Amy Johns (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport) finished with seven points, nine rebounds and three steals despite battling foul trouble for most of the game.
After Millersville took a 28-20 lead at halftime, the two teams combined for six lead changes and four ties in the second half. Trailing by one point midway through the second half, the Vulcans scored six-straight points to take a 45-40 lead with 11:21 remaining. The two teams then evened the score twice and traded the lead before Millersville senior Ashley Moyer hit a three-pointer to give the Marauders the last lead change of the game, 52-50, with 7:24 left.
Building off the momentum of Moyer's three-pointer, Millersville mounted a 14-4 run over a span of five-plus minutes to take a 66-54 lead with 1:38 remaining. The Marauders then made 8-of-10 free-throw attempts in the final minute to seal the victory.
Cal U struggled for the field in the first half for the second-straight night, shooting only 24 percent (6-of-25). However, the Vulcans shot over 55 percent in the second half to finish the game making 40.7 percent (22-of-54) of their shots. The Marauders also struggled with their shooting touch in the first half before finishing the game by shooting at a 37.9 clip (25-of-66). Both teams shot similar percentages from three-point territory and the free-throw line.
Graduate student guard Ashley Moore led the Marauders with 16 points off the bench, while redshirt freshman guard Mashira Newman and senior forward Raquel Green each collected double-doubles in the winning effort.
After being significantly out-rebounded in the first meeting this season, the Vulcans were out-rebounded by only a 45-44 margin on Saturday. However, Millersville dominated from in close, scoring 32 points from in the paint and 22 second-chance points. The aggressive defense by the Marauders also forced the Vulcans into 25 turnovers, which were converted into 32 points.
Cal U is scheduled to return 13 players next season, including three starters, but has the difficult task of replacing one of the best backcourt duos in school history in Williams and senior
Crystal Andrews (Johnstown, Pa./Johnstown/Pitt-Johnstown).
