• Box Score
CALIFORNIA (Feb. 12) – The California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team jumped out to a 23-point halftime lead and held on for a 70-57 victory over visiting Mercyhurst in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play on Saturday afternoon.
After completing the season sweep of the Lakers, the Vulcans improve to 16-6 overall and 7-3 in league play while holding onto sole possession of third place in the PSAC West. Mercyhurst falls to 13-12 this season and 5-5 in the conference.
Senior forward Kayla Smith (Elkins, W.Va./Elkins) led Cal U with 23 points on 8-of-10 from the floor and 7-of-11 at the free-throw line. The reigning PSAC West Player of the Week also pulled down nine rebounds (four offensive) and added four assists and two steals in the win. Junior guard Danielle Luckett (Chicago, Ill./James Hubert Blake (Md.)) finished with 13 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Classmate Amy Johns (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport) added 11 points and sophomore guard Stephanie Michael (Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown) contributed 10 points.
The Vulcans opened the game on a 10-2 run spanning the first four-plus minutes of the game that included six points from Smith. With the score 22-10 after a jumper from Mercyhurst sophomore Dana Banda, a Michael lay-up jumpstarted a 20-9 run by the Vulcans that spanned the final 10:39 of the first half and saw Cal U head into the break leading 42-19.
Over the first 2:19 of the second half, Mercyhurst used a 10-0 run, capped off by a trey by junior Megan Hoffman, to cut the Vulcans' lead to 13 points before a three-pointer by freshman forward Elena Antonenko (Moscow, Russia/State University of Physical Education) ended the run with the score 45-29. Using a 16-9 run, Merychurst cut the Cal U lead to as low as nine points, 54-45, on a Banda three-pointer with 6:03 remaining. The two teams traded baskets the rest of the game with Cal U holding a slight 14-12 scoring advantage, highlighted by eight points from Michael, including two treys.
For the game, the Vulcans held a plus-11 rebound advantage, 35-24, and out-scored the Lakers in the paint, 30-22, and 10-2 on second-chance opportunities. Cal U forced 24 turnovers and out-scored Mercyhurst on the fastbreak 15-0.
Senior Amy Achesinski led Mercyhurst with 21 points, despite picking up her third foul with 15:14 left in the game. Hoffman added eight points and Banda contributed seven points for the Lakers.
Cal U returns to action on Wednesday, Feb. 16 when it hosts PSAC West rival Slippery Rock at 6 p.m. The game will be a part of the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association (WBCA) “Think Pink” initiative and fans are asked to wear pink in support of breast cancer research. Live stats will be available by clicking here.
