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CALIFORNIA (Dec. 17) –  Juniors Kaitlynn Fratz (Accident, Md./Northern Garrett) and Irina Kukolj (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg) each scored 21 points, as the Vulcans earned an 85-79 win over West Chester in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover play Tuesday evening in the Convocation Center.
 
The win improves the California University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team to 3-5 overall, while the Golden Rams fall to 6-3 this season.
 
Fratz and Kukolj each posted 21 points in the win and combined to shoot six-of-seven from beyond the arc. Kukolj established a career high in scoring while playing 19 minutes off the bench. Junior Emma Mahady (Albury, Australia/Xavier) added a balanced line with 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals. Senior Elena Antonenko (Moscow, Russia/State University of Physical Education) cleaned the glass with a game-high 12 rebounds and added a pair of blocks in the win.
 
Fratz and freshman CeCe Dixon (Munhall, Pa./Steel Valley) helped lead Cal U to an 11-4 lead in the opening three minutes of the game, combining for all the Vulcans points, but West Chester chipped away at the deficit over the next 10 minutes and took a 20-19 lead with 8:17 left in the first half.

Cal U regained the lead, 25-24, on a Mahady jumper with 6:04 left in the opening half and out-scored the Golden Rams 15-12 to close out the half. The Vulcans shot 53 percent (17-of-32) to take a 40-36 lead into the break, but were limited by 12 turnovers.
 
The game remained close through the opening five minutes of the second half with Cal U up 46-44 with 15:54 remaining in the game. The Vulcans created separation with a 9-0 run over the next four minutes to take a 57-44 lead with 11:49 left in the contest.
 
Cal U and West Chester exchanged spurts over the next several minutes with the Golden Rams closing within four, 68-64, with 3:04 left in the game. West Chester pulled within one possession, 72-69, with 2:28 remaining in the contest, but the Vulcans tallied off eight-unanswered points, including three-pointers by Fratz and Kukolj, to take an 80-69 lead with 1:02 left to play. Cal U connected on five-of-seven free-throw attempts in the final minute to secure the victory.
 
The Vulcans maintained the lead for the game's final 26 minutes and shot 49.2 percent (31-of-63) for the game, compared to the 40.3 percent (29-of-72) posted by the Golden Rams.
 
Sophomores Brittany Sicinski and Dallas Ely led West Chester with 27 and 21 points, respectively.
 
Cal U returns to the court tomorrow, Wednesday, Dec. 17, when they host Cheyney in PSAC Crossover action. The opening tip is set for 5:30 p.m.

Notes: Fratz surpassed 1,000 career points in the victory. She scored 936 points as a member of Pitt-Johnstown (2011-13) and has added 70 points this season to total 1,006 for her career